


Night of the Huntress

by Underworlder



Category: Bloodborne (Video Game), RWBY
Genre: Adult RWBY, Alternate Universe - Fusion, Blood and Gore, Descent into Madness, Eldrich Truth, F/F, F/M, Grant us eyes, Insanity, No Incest, Tragedy, Veteran Hunters, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-28
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2018-09-27 10:52:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 42,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10016180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Underworlder/pseuds/Underworlder
Summary: A Bloodborne/RWBY Fusion AU.Set before Dust began to be used by the Hunters as a weapon.Remnant is dominated by the Creatures of Grimm, with mankind united only through the Hunter's Guild, trying to keep whatever meager space they still have. So, once word about Byrgenwerth Academy's secret studies into the Grimm reaches the Guild, it's only logical they would send one of their best solo Huntresses to the region of the city of Yharnam to infiltrate the Academy and "convince" it's scholars to share such information.While Yang always loves seeing new places and getting into a good fight, she was not ready for this particular mission and the iSIgHt inTo- Grant us eyes... Grant us sight...





	1. Prologue

“Yharnam you say?”

The tavern was your typical, badly lit, side road place built into a hill and rarely getting any sunlight; the kind of place people stopped because it was the only one with something to drink in several miles. There were few tables and a counter made of cheap wood that would get you splinters if you leaned too much over it.

Building it that way is practically the norm for road business like this. It was cheap, fast to raise and could be abandoned at a moment’s notice in case any Grimm came.

But you would probably be too busy getting drunk to notice these things.

“Of course I’ve heard of it. Everybody ‘round these parts know.”

The man talking uses ragged, dusty clothes, a hat and stained boots told of somebody that lives on the road, constantly moving. Probably looking for the next place where he could get intoxicated and forget this or that memory.

A fairly typical guy for these times.

“A city that has been built with high walls… heavily protected… a safe place… there’s rumors of it being the longest standing city built by man.”

His speech doesn’t have any slur to it, even as he drinks more from his bottle. Though the tone indicates somebody who has lived long enough to reach his late thirties.

“But who am I to make such claims? If you want somebody who can really tell you about it, we have Perry here,” he points to his left, to another man sitting in the counter, clothes equally dusty and ragged, though one would be too busy looking at the tiny antlers coming out of his head to notice such minor details. “Ain’ I right? You said you used to live there, right Perry?”

“Yeah, I did…” his voice is younger than the man, posture a lot more slouched, even more so as he talks. There is also the minute sign of his gritted teeth, indicating some anger or resentment at the subject. “Let me tell you; if you’re going there for safety, might as well walk into a Deathstalker’s nest. At least the Grimm would be more receptive of visitors.”

“Let me guess: Faunus unfriendly?”

“More like ‘everybody who’s not from Yharnam’ unfriendly,” Perry the Faunus takes a swig of his bottle before continuing. “I’m not the vindictive type, but I have to admit I was surprised to see all foreigners being treated as shit there, human and Faunus. Guys act like you don’t exist, or shouldn’t exist at best. At worst, they give a glare like you killed their whole family. But that’s not the main problem.”

Another swig. The Faunus gulps down the bottle as if he couldn’t get drunk any sooner. Surprisingly, when he speaks again he still sounds sober:

“That city… let me tell you… that whole city is insane. The streets are labyrinths that you could get lost in for the rest of your life and never find the way home. There’s a cult or something there, calling themselves the Dusk Church. The guys practically rule the city and stated that anybody there should drink this disgusting Blood.”

“Blood?” the old man besides the Faunus asks. From the way he's looking, this is news even to him. “What blood? You mean like-”

“Dunno what it is. It’s what they call it. Supposedly, makes you strong enough to take on a fully-grown Beowulf with your bare hands. ‘So Yharnam may protect itself in these dark times. Anyone can become a Huntsman and protect their loved ones, but only we will be able to ensure humanity’s future inside these walls’,” he seems to be trying to imitate somebody. From the impersonation, it sounds like some soft-spoken, seedy guy. “Do you believe the thing sells more than booze?”

“… you’re kidding. Right?”

“Wish I was,” another bottle is put in front of Perry. “I think it’s probably because Blood kills your sense of taste or something. Ever since I took it everything seems tasteless. I can’t even get drunk,” he sloshes the beverage on his bottle.

“It’s a sad and terrible thing when a man’s taken away the right to get boozed.”

The old man’s tone sounds like a jest, which probably explains why Perry glares at him before saying:

“You want something to laugh about? How about this: Grimm wandering the streets!”

If somebody else was in the tavern, they probably would have stopped and looked at Perry as he spoke that. Grimm were never a laughing matter, unless you were a Hunter and even then there were implicit limits to it. To hear there were some of these creatures stalking right outside of your house...

“How... ?” the old man asks, but is unable to complete his query.

“Hell if I know! Those walls?! They did fuck all as Grimm simply started to appear inside the town. Thanks to that, the Church had to organize nightly Hunts to get the situation under control and even enlist some people that took the Blood as unofficial Hunters.”

“The Hunter’s Guild would have a conniption if they heard you saying that? What are they even doing, letting the situation get to this point?!”

“Oh yeah, forgot to mention. The Hunter’s Guild? Might as well not exist in Yharnam. Remember when I said the Dusk Church controlled the city? According to them, the Guild is unable to defend themselves, much less a city. No, apparently all they need is the Blood, not some outsiders desecrating their city or some shit like that.”

Perry chugged the rest of his drink as his listener turns his head down and sighs, sounding resigned.

“Ok... you’re right. Entire city is crazy.”

“Oh, but that’s not all,” Perry speaks up. His conversation partner sends him a look of surprise that clearly says “there’s more?!”. “Right before I managed to escape, I heard a couple Church Hunters saying they were sealing the gates shut. Nobody in, nobody out.”

As interesting as it is to hear about how those in control of a city apparently disregard any common sense, there are subjects more interesting to cover.

“You mean Byrgenwerth?” Perry the Faunus asks. “Yeah, I’ve heard they studied the Grimm there, but the Academy’s the most well-guarded place in the entire city. And since I’m a foreigner, I obviously never set foot in the place and from what I’ve heard they keep all research under the lock.”

“Wouldn’t that kind of information actually help against the Grimm? What exactly would they even study? The things don’t leave bodies behind,” the man once more inquires.

“Your guess's as good as mine. As I’ve said; Not from Yharnam, nothing for you. Not even the locals know what goes on inside there.”

In these times of Grimm ruling over the land, any information considered useful for fighting the Grimm was to be shared. It was a common understanding between everybody. After all, what could be more important than the survival of humanity?

When word about Yharnam and its scholars that apparently refused to share any of their findings got out and reached the Hunter’s Guild, they decided the situation warranted some looking into.

That’s where you came in.

“Already leaving?” the old man asks.

“You know you’re crazy if you think of going there, right?”

“That’s what they always tell me,” you speak back in a boisterous tone.

It's true. Many people called you and your “stunts” crazy.

“Feh!” Perry the Faunus shakes his head. “Can we at least know your name? So we can carve you a gravestone with the sayings ‘here lies a crazy woman’.”

You know he’s mocking you. That’s ok. You got so used to it that you kinda learned to tune out what most people say.

Still, you answer them.

“Huntress Yang.”


	2. Welcome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Huntress Yang arrives at the city of Yharnam.
> 
> The welcome she gets could be better...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is formatted from Sufficient Velocity forum, where the original version is posted, complete with a character profile, which I've added here.

**Huntress Yang  
**  
Age: 27  
Father: Taiyang Xiao Long  
Mother: Huntress Raven  
  
Affiliation: Hunter's Guild  
Rank: Veteran Huntress  
Reputation: The Final Solution for Grimm _(made up)_ , _That_ Headache (Why do they keep saying that?)

  
  
  _If life is short, might as well make it awesome. No use worrying about the next day and forget the now._

  
  
Born of retired Hunter Taiyang and Hunter of Hunters Raven, Yang followed in her father's footsteps and decided to take up the dangerous job of becoming a huntress. With an exceptionally strong Aura and a powerful and rare Semblance that allows her to absorb blunt and impact damage to empower herself, Yang quickly made a (infamous) reputation between her instructors and peers alike.  
  
Her Semblance, combined with Aura, allows her to take more punishment than any active Hunter known and her recorded kill count is among one of the highest, quickly approaching that of her father before his "retirement". As such, the Guild employs her for dangerous solo missions where sending out a big number of hunters would be impractical.  
  
With the recent loss of several settlements, as well as all hunters protecting them, the Guild has faced a severe drop in numbers. Yang knows that she can very well be the next casualty, Aura and Semblance notwithstanding, on the endless war against the Grimm, so she decided to make the most she can out of her life while she can.

* * *

 

Some would say that volunteering to a mission in a hostile territory full of people that would not be cooperative in the least, or outright obstacles at worse, without any sort of backup would be, at the very least, insane.  
  
Those people probably never met you.  
  
You are Yang, a Huntress. One of the best the Guild has and known as “The Final Solution” for any Grimm problem.  
  
... well, not exactly. But you’ll eventually make it official. Besides, “the final solution for any Grimm problem” sounds badass in your opinion.  
  
Right now, you hitched a ride on a cart that would pass near the main road to Yharnam. The info you gathered on the way seems to match with your briefing, although you can’t really call rumors and talks from drunk men on bars “accurate info”.  
  
It seems that some scholars on Yharnam have been researching the Grimm, but have refused to divulge what they are researching and Guild presence in the city is, at best, negligible (as in, nobody heard anything from the huntsmen there). Considering what you’ve heard, you can guess why that is.  
  
Still, the Guild wasn’t exactly happy to hear that there was research on Humanity’s predators being conducted in complete secrecy. If this was true then there was potential for the results of said research to help humanity’s seemingly hopeless fight against the Grimm.  
  
You have to take any advantage you could when it came to this conflict...  
  
Anyways, enough with the mopey thoughts! Your job is to enter the city, find this Brydgethwhatever (who came up with that name? Seriously) and politely ask them to divulge their findings to the guild, if they are really doing research on the Grimm. If they refuse (you grin at the thought) you have _carte blanché_ to “convince” them.  
  
They thought on sending a team together with you, but you dismissed the idea. Solo works were always your strong suit. Not having to hold back in worry that your partners would be caught in the crossfire allowed you to do what you did best: take names and bust some heads.  
  
Besides, they lost another village in the east just last week and all the Huntsmen assisting with the people were killed by the Grimm incursion. As it is, they need every Aura-enabled Huntsmen and if Yharnam is as hostile to outsiders as you’ve heard, a group of them would only call unnecessary attention.  
  
The horse cart stops as the road makes a “T” curve. A nearby sign points towards the next settlement following forward, but there is no indication on what is on the other path.  
  
“Here it is,” your ride speaks as you take your bag with your things from his cart. “Following that road will take you to Yharnam’s Bridge and the city proper,” he indicates the unmarked path with his head. “Honestly, I don’t know why on Remnant you would want to go to that place, but I suppose it’s Hunter’s business.”  
  
“No need to worry about me, Joe,” you say.  
  
“My name’s not Joe.”  
  
“I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself. Anyway, thanks for the ride, Joe.”  
  
“I’m not... oh forget it,” the man then leaves, mumbling about “crazy Huntresses”. You smirk, thinking he probably never met the guys from Mistral. Those were seriously scary.  
  
_Ok, time to focus on the job_.  
  
You walk the road and, in a few minutes, arrive in a deep ravine. Thinking about who exactly though that building a big city near a ravine was a good idea, you walk on the grand, stone bridge and see the stone walls in the distance.  
  
Yharnam apparently has an old settlement adjacent to it and a large forest on its limits. How they keep themselves standing when they are so close to the woods is anybody’s guess. Maybe they have some badass Huntsman living in the city. Maybe that Blood thing you’ve heard about really works.  
  
_But seriously, who names the things in that city? Why would people drink something with ‘blood’ on the name?_  
  
Your musings end as you find yourself in front of a giant door. You whistle and have to admit that talk about “oldest city built by humanity in memory” is starting to sound more plausible. You grab a ring and knock on the door, hearing it resonate inside like a thunder.  
  
“Go awaaaayyy....” what you can only assume is the gate watch speaks. He sounds like he could use some water. Like, urgently.  
  
“I’ve heard you had a... Grimm problem,” if the infestation was as bad as that Perry guy made it to be, this is probably an understatement. Still, no need to hurt people’s pride.  
  
At least for now.  
  
“Outsiders not welcooome...” seriously, that guy should have his throat checked.  
  
“I can do it for free.”  
  
It was not unheard of for some huntsmen to go freelance since the Guild does have a lot of rules on conduct and everything. They never last long to say the least; either succumbing in the job or to the strain of killing Grimm nonstop , which ends up taking a tool on their minds. Not everybody is cut for the life of the Hunt.  
  
That is why the Hunters of Hunters are a thing, you think with a scowl.  
  
Anyway, back on the job and... is that a gun pointed at you?  
  
A small hatch has opened in the giant gate and, indeed, there is a gun pointing at you. You can’t even see the guy holding it since the hatch is so small, only pipe of the rifle peeking out.  
  
“Ok... no need for that. Look, I’m leaving,” you say, putting your hands up and slowly walking back.  
  
When you are sufficiently away, the gun retracts and the hatch closes.  
  
“Welp... so much for that...” you sigh. “Now how do I get in?”  
  
You don’t want to climb the walls. There is no telling if they are patrolling above. Circulating around the city for a back entrance would probably take the entire day and you aren’t in the mood for camping outside a hostile territory.  
  
You hear a loud caw in the distance. Turning to your left, you see a Nevermore flying in your direction. Why is there a Nevermore flying so close to the city?  
  
That’s when you have an idea.  
  
Grinning, you position yourself with your carrying bag in hand, waiting for when the dark bird would eventually take a hold of you. Back in other missions, your superiors always talked about your “creative thinking” (why did they put so much emphasis on those words?) and severely discouraged that. You honestly don’t understand why. You have good- scratch that, AWESOME ideas most of the time.  
  
The Nevermore grabs you in its talons, taking you away from the bridge and gaining altitude. You have studied and seen enough of the avian Grimm to know it would take you back to its nest to feed its youngling. It never hunts too far from its nest, so you should get a nice view from the city and-  
  
There’s fire on the streets...  
  
Those that aren’t on fire have Grimm on them...  
  
Those that don’t have Grimm on them have turned and/or abandoned carriages, coffins and burning crosses with fresh carcasses of _something_. It looks like the situation is even worse then what you’ve heard on the way here.  
  
_Sounds like a good party_. you think.  
  
Sure, it looks intimidating, but you’ve been to more Grimm nests than you can count and the state of Yharnam’s streets have nothing on the state of the bodies inside those.  
  
Getting tired of waiting for the service on the Nevermore Flights tm you decide to file a complaint in the form of swinging your bag, reinforcing it with your Aura and throwing it right at the joint of the giant bird’s wing. Apparently, that invalidates your ticket, as the Grimm caws and drops you.  
  
Your instructor would probably call for your head for this little stunt, but honestly, this isn’t the first time you ride a Grimm, or jump from a height that would kill most people. Besides, some of your friends did this as a routine thing. Sure, everybody else on the Guild called them “headaches”, but honestly, they always came out unscathed.  
  
And the Nevermore is coming back. Apparently, it didn’t like your complaint and was going to appeal.  
  
It tries to dive bomb you, but with a twist of your body, you avoid the sharp beak and grab onto the feathers on the base of its neck. Looking around, you locate your bag and tug at the avian Grimm, directing it towards the trajectory of your belongings while it’s still diving.  
  
_Gotcha!_ you think as you feel the bird ascending flight again. Its eyes on you. “So... nice weather, huh?”  
  
The Nervermore ascends again and dives, trying to shake you off. As fun as this is, you have a job to do and you don’t want to lose daylight. Plus, it probably would take you a while to get to a house where somebody would be willing to shelter you instead of shooting you.  
  
You look back, aim and deliver a kick right at the joint of the Grimm’s wing. That doesn’t do much, besides making it angrier. Seems you need to be more direct. You bring your hand to your belt and feel for the bracer hanging on it. With a practiced motion, you put it on and activate the compartment on the top with a flick of your wrist, revealing a triangular blade.  
  
You briefly let go of the Nevermore’s neck and grab the feathers on its back. Aiming again, you punch with your armed hand and the blade sinks in, severing the nerves. The Nevermore caws in agony and starts spiraling in free-fall, not able to stabilize its flight.  
  
Finally letting go, you look bellow and see a nice landing spot...

**[CEntrAl YHarNAm]**

 

 

You impact the earth with enough force to create a mini-crater and raise a cloud of dust as you crouch, letting your Aura and Semblance absorb the force of the impact. You get up and look behind right in time to see the Nevermore falling into one of those nice, pointy towers. And by falling, you mean impaling itself like a piece of steak on a hook. The giant, bird Grimm caws in agony as it tries to uselessly dislodge itself, only managing to sink further into the tower. Eventually, it just stops moving.  
  
Your first kill in this place. You feel a bit giddy.  
  
“Nice.”  
  
With a grin, you turn around and see you’re in some sort of small graveyard. Behind you is a large building with a sign above the door stating “Clinic”. To your sides are gates. From what you remember during your aerial tour, the gate to your left leads to the main street.  
  
“Well, no point in dawdling. Gotta find a place to stay for the night,” sleeping on the streets is never fun, as your back would happily remind you in the following morning.  
  
Opening the left gate (it seems heavier than other gates you remember, but nothing to give you pause) you step into a side street with a balcony overlooking a long drop. To your right there’s another gate, a big carriage and small carts abandoned on the street. Things must be really bad if people are just leaving their things behind like that.  
  
There were sounds of things burning and metal being dragged on the cobblestone. Likely one those guys coming up from behind the carriage, the one with the ax.  
  
Well, time to get to know the locals.  
  
“Hey there guys,” you speak, making the three men stop and turn to you. They are wearing some beaten up clothes and the one carrying the ax also has a torch while the other two have sickles. “Do you know the way to the nearest Inn?” you put on your best sunny smile, the one that always gets people in a friendly mood and the guys to pay you drinks.  
  
However, it seems these guys don’t like happiness. The one with the ax advances towards you, raising his make-shift weapon and taking a swing with a cry. You dodge that with ease.  
  
“Hey, no need to get all stressed up,” the other two advance and try to hit you again, you back step while dodging, not even raising your arms to block. “Sheesh. Something bit you?” the guy with the ax screams again as he attacks. Another dodge. “Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?”  
  
Apparently they don’t appreciate your refined sense of humor, because you can swear they redoubled their efforts to swish-kebab you. You’ve already circled around them, but these guys are relentless on their attempts to make a Yang-salad. … and now you’re hungry. Great…  
  
Another duck. This one actually got close, but not so much as you get up and talk:  
  
“You know. If you didn’t want to talk you could have simp… ly…” you stop talking.  
  
There. Floating in front of you… is a lock of your hair.  
  
A lock that should be in your head.  
  
A lock that should have lived longer.  
  
A lock that you didn’t even had the chance to groom into perfection.  
  
A lock that they **murdered**!  
  
“You…” your eyes instantly go red. The apparent leader of the trio try to hit you with that torch. You grab the burning point and the flames seem to instantly die at your touch. “Shouldn’t…” you punch him with enough force to send him flying like a bullet into the carriage and making a hole on it. “Have…” one of the sickle carrying guys try to attack you again. You kick him into a bunch of barrels, reducing those to splinters. “Done…” the other seems to get smart and tries to back away. “THAT!!!” you don’t let him get away and punch him _into_ the nearest wall.  
  
Your rage at having someone cut off one of your precious locks subsides and you look around to see the damage. The two guys seem to be alive at least. Good. You really would have felt uncomfortable if you beat up people that didn’t have any Aura shielding.  
  
Going around the carriage on the street, you see there is another hole on its side and see the guy from earlier laying on a pile of splinters. You get closer and can see his chest raising and falling. You feel tempted to give him a “special treatment”, but decide you’ve already done enough head-butting with the locals for the day.  
  
You turn to leave when a hand grabs your leg. Looking down you see the ax dude crawling over to you as he mumbled:  
  
“Foul beast… scouring… our streets… have to… cleanse Yharnam… from Grimm…” he looks up to you and you raise an eyebrow. His eyes are completely overtaken by red, almost seeming to glow. The pupils are barely visible from this angle.  
  
And just like that, he passes out.  
  
_… ok._  
  
You dislodge your leg from his hand and go to the big, open gate leading to a wide street. You see gravestones and coffins doting the view. It seems at least Yharnam can manage to give its dead some form of treatment. You’ve got tired of counting the number of settlements you’ve been to that were attacked by the Grimm so regularly that the people simply gave up and left the bodies of those caught by the dark creatures to rot on the streets.  
  
There’s the sound of fire, moans and… was that a roar? Yharnam probably has seen better days if it’s in this stat- you jump back right as a giant cleaver comes down on where you had been an instant before.  
  
You had heard footsteps ever since you’ve landed on that graveyard so you had decided to see who the big guy was. And boy, was he big?  
  
The “big guy” is actually an Ursa. An Ursa wearing thick, armor plating and using a weapon. Why is there an Ursa using a weapon?  
  
_I’m going to see a lot of weird on this town, aren’t I?_ you wear your bracelets and flick your wrists, letting the blades slide out of their compartments. “Ok, big guy. Let’s Dance!”  
  
The Ursa roars from under the cloak it wears over its head and tries to take a swing again. You duck under it and take advantage of the Grimm overextending its reach to get close and put a few Aura-enhanced hits in. The armor takes the hits, but starts to accumulate dents.  
  
You jump behind as the monster tries for a body slam and aims a kick at its face. It doesn’t seem to do much as the Grimm swings that giant ax with a speed you didn’t think possible for this kind of Grimm. While your Aura reinforced the shielded compartments of the bracelets and absorbed most of the impact, you still got thrown on your back. A roar and you roll to the side, as the Ursa tries to slice you in half with that ax while you’re down.  
  
Getting up, you punch the thing’s face and feel something break. The Grimm doesn’t feel pain and only retaliates even faster as you now strain to dodge both claw swipes and that humongous ax. You smile as you attack again, only to be head-butted by the armored monster and thrown into a wall by a swing of the blunt side of its weapon, leaving an impression on it.  
  
_Thanks for the boost, you bastard._ you think as the Grimm runs (honestly, what’s up with this? Ursa don’t run on two legs) and tries to head-butt you yet again, but this time you have the edge.  
  
Normally, Ursa are very strong. Of the low level Grimm, they are easily the most resilient. Physically overpowering the bear Grimm could be considered suicide.  
  
You laughed when they told you not to do that.  
  
You dislodge from the wall, eyes changing from your vivid violet to a crimson red color. You rear back your fist, give it an extra boost with your Semblance and swing it right as the Grimm comes at you. The impact doesn’t so much stop the Ursa as it _rockets_ it back and _into_ the opposite wall.  
  
_Payback time!_ you don’t let the Grimm any time to recover as you throw yourself on it and unleash a flurry of Semblance-powered punches, digging the Grimm deeper into the wall, shards of it bone plates and armor flying as your punches _tear_ them apart.  
  
Eventually, you stop. And then kick the bear for good measure...  
  
And punch it for good luck.  
  
You would have continued, but the corpse started to dissolve, leaving only the crumpled armor, cloak and weapon behind. Pity. Ursa make for great punching bags. Also, you always felt a little bit restless when you use your Semblance, a somewhat bothersome side-effect from training and perfecting it, but you can reign it in.  
  
You turn and see a Beowolf coming at you from the street. Mouth hanging open and it was ready to pounce at you. Grinning again, you prepare to punch it with enough strength to send it flying out of the city… until its head explodes and it falls to the ground.  
  
…  
  
Did someone just steal your kill?  
  
You see a red figure jumping from a bridge up ahead, landing softly on the ground. He, or she, uses a long, red cape with a hood and carries a gun in one hand. Huffing, you speak up:  
  
“I could’ve taken ‘im.”  
  
“Oh, I’m sure you would,” the kill thief speaks in a female voice. _She_ then pulls her hood back. “But I decided to help anyway.”  
  
She is, in one word, pretty. Black hair tipped with red at the points, leather clothes and a black corset... also her smile is a very attractive one. She seems a bit younger than you.  
  
“Well, suit yourself then,” you speak. The girl just smiles at you as she examines your attire, more specifically the weapons on your arms.  
  
“You’re a huntress? I mean... like one from the Guild?”  
  
“Yep. Huntress Yang! Nice to meet ‘cha,” you reply, giving her a winning smile and extending a hand.  
  
“Ruby Rose.”  
  
You two shake hands, although you keep a careful eye at the girl’s weapon. She doesn’t seem hostile, but it never hurts to be careful. Besides, who is to say those guys you met earlier weren’t her friends.  
  
“So... what’s that weapon you have?” the girl asks as soon as you both are done with the introductions. Her eyes shine with something that you identify as excitement.  
  
“You interested in weapons? Are you a huntress by some chance?” you wonder... you knew few people that could nail a shot like that on a moving target.  
  
“Puft... no, not really. I mean, not like you,” she tries to dismiss it, before going back to the previous subject. “Anyway, does your weapon have a name?” you let out an “Huh?” “Is there any special feature to it? Does it shoot?”  
  
_Oh... she’s one of those guys_. you’ve met people that when in presence of weapons were... a tad bit too excited. Like _really_ excited.  
  
Before Ruby can continue to press you for answers you don’t even know how to give, the two of you hear the sound metal being dragged on stone and the light of what seems to be torches. Ruby turns and her smile is replaced with a frown.  
  
“Quick. Get on that alley,” she points you towards a pile of crates and another carriage on it.  
  
“Why?”  
  
“Just do it!” she presses you.  
  
You don’t feel particularly comfortable following orders from somebody you’ve just met, but you did just antagonize some locals already (which was totally not your fault, by the way). Better not to aggravate people further, considering one of them is at least trying to help you. You do as the girl asks and hides behind a pile of crates, but keep your senses sharp.  
  
You try to sense their auras to monitor their position and easily picks up Ruby’s. Hers is very strong. Nowhere near yours, but you have no doubt the girl could hold her own in a fight. You also pinpoint five more approaching and those are... odd...  
  
Well, it’s not like you’re an Aura expert, so who is to say theirs might just have some sort of condition or something.  
  
Anyway, best hear what they’re talking.  
  
“...eard something. Was that you?” a man’s voice asks.  
  
“Just killed a Beowolf. Nothing more,” Ruby replies.  
  
“And that armor?”  
  
“Ursa. Probably from a freshly turned.”  
  
“You took one down by yourself?” there is some suspicion on that voice.  
  
_“Freshly turned”? What does that mean?_  
  
“You can see it, right? Or are you suggesting it killed itself?” you have to put your hand over your mouth not to giggle at Ruby’s comeback. Girl has some spunk, you have to admit.  
  
“I would show some respect to your elders, Gravemaker...”  
  
You don’t get the rest of the talk, but can hear the guys leaving. When Ruby whistles, you get it as the sign that the coast was clear. Coming out of your cover, you walk to her and ask:  
  
“Are all the guys in Yharnam always this pleasant?”  
  
“Just to foreigners.”  
  
“You’re not from here?”  
  
“Neither are you, right?”  
  
Before you can reply your stomach then growls, making you realize you haven’t eaten anything since this morning. Ruby giggles as you scratch the back of your head.  
  
“So... know a good place to eat?” you ask.  
  
“Sure. My uncle’s house is nearby.”  
  
You answer her with one of your sunny smiles, telling her to lead the way. Ruby quickly turns and takes point, guiding you through the street.  
  
“Oh, by the way...” the young woman wearing crimson speaks. “Welcome to Yharnam.”


	3. Unheeded Warnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yang is given shelter by Ruby and her Uncle Qrow.
> 
> As a way of thanking them, she accompanies Ruby to get her Uncle his medicine.
> 
> Then she discovers one of Yharnam's many, disturbing turths...

The first thing one would notice upon hearing Ruby Rose talking is that she likes weapons.  
  
The second thing one would notice is that Ruby _really_ likes weapons.  
  
“So… I have this,” that is the only warning you have before the young woman unfolds…  
  
“A scythe?”  
  
It's a thing made of hardwood, which blade detaches and is made of a metal you identify as Siderite. There are weapons of the guild made out of it, but since the material is so rare they are only handed to Veteran Hunters.  
  
You like talking weapons as much as the next Hunter, which might as well be a requirement for the job in your opinion... and, in your opinion, someone carrying around a scythe as big as they are have to either be incredibly skilled, or a really big show off.  
  
“Yup,” Ruby speaks, popping the “p”. “Like it?” she sounds like a timid trainee talking to a Instructor. Why does she have to look so cute while doing it?  
  
“Far from me to question somebody’s weapon of choice,” considering yours is an over-glorified, wrist dagger... ”Does it shoot?” you ask with a grin, remembering one of the young woman’s early questions.  
  
“Nah. Couldn’t make it work. Also, this is kinda my mom’s and a family heirloom. The last time my uncle caught me trying to modify it… let’s just he's a very scary man when he's angry,” Ruby cringes as she speaks that.  
  
The two of you take a leisurely stroll through the chaotic streets of Yharnam, mindless of the moaning and occasional roar. It makes you wary, but what exactly could you do when you didn’t even know where it was coming from? Also, Ruby looks completely at ease, like this is just another day for her.  
  
That thought makes you very unsettled.  
  
“So… you a Huntress?” you decide to take the talk somewhere safe.  
  
Ruby does seem to have the makings of one; the alert posture, the weapons and, most of all, the smile of one that saw death on a daily basis and tries not to let it show.  
  
You are personally familiar with it.  
  
“Not officially, no. My uncle did train me as one. He was a Huntsman himself. My mom too,” you are about to ask her about this uncle she mentions so much, but she stops in front of a door.  
  
You look around and see a balcony ahead, giving view to some kind of drop and another section of the city. There is a gate to the side of the house and a window with the lights on. Ruby knocks on the door and you hear a masculine voice answer:  
  
“The password?”  
  
You can see Ruby raise an eyebrow and look over at you. You shrug. The scythe wielder sighs and speaks:  
  
“There’s no password, uncle.”  
  
“Really? Then what was that the other day? A prank?”  
  
You stifle a laugh. Ruby blushes.  
  
“Uncle Qrow. We have a visit.”  
  
That actually gets the door to open. The man Ruby calls uncle is tall, gray-haired and bearded. A collection of scars adorns his face, telling about a life of fighting Grimm. He looks you over as if deciding if you are a threat or not.  
  
“You’re not a Yharnamite, are you?” the man asks with a judging expression on his face.  
  
“Is it that obvious?” you ask, putting up a smile to disarm the situation.  
  
“Ye-“ it is at that moment that he starts coughing. Rather violently, you might add.  
  
Ruby is by his side in an instant, bringing him inside and motioning you to come and close the door behind. The house you are in looks a lot better than many you visited over your years of service for the Guild. It doesn’t seem to have any pricey decorations, but there are pictures of a dark haired woman, Ruby’s uncle and a little girl you is a younger Ruby (she was an unbelievably cute child).  
  
You follow them to a small, living room to catch the end tail of a talk:  
  
“-ake your medicine?”  
  
“Just three hours ago… it doesn’t seem to be having much of an effect,” he coughs again, but this time manages to recover long enough to look at you and ask. “Who are you?”  
  
“Huntress Yang. At your service,” you give a smart salute.  
  
The man looks you over once more, before stating:  
  
“You look too green to be one.”  
  
“Oh, I have my stories to tell. I just don’t have to leave them visible.”  
  
By “stories” you mean, of course, scars. Every Veteran Hunter worth his salt has a collection of those and you are no exception. You just make sure not to get hit on your face too much and use clothing that covers your arms, midriff and back. It also helps having a Semblance that absorbs blunt damage.  
  
“Suit yourself,” he speaks as Ruby goes to an adjacent room where you can see some cooking utensils. “I’m Qrow. I used to be a part of the Guild’s Yharnam Division before it got disbanded.”  
  
“So they really disbanded the Guild here… that explains a lot,” you muse.  
  
“And you’re here because of that?” Qrow asks.  
  
Ruby soon comes back with a glass of water and something on her hand. She hands it to her uncle, who uses the water to swallow it. His coughing seems to subside after that, allowing you to continue:  
  
“Not really. We’ve heard something about Grimm being studied in that Byrdmeth place.”  
  
“You mean Byrgenwerth?” Ruby asks.  
  
“Yeah. That,” _How come she can speak the name? Must be because she lives here._ you think.  
  
“Then you’re losing your time,” Qrow says, his voice much stronger now. “There are Church Hunters guarding the place and when I say 'hunters' I mean genuine ones, not this lot that wander the streets like mobs. If I were you, I would turn around, leave and never come back.”  
  
You look at the man. His expression is not one of someone who is joking. You then look at Ruby:  
  
“Your uncle is a real sunshine, isn’t he?” Qrow looks incredulous. Ruby has to put a hand on her mouth to stop herself from giggling. Yeah, you have that effect on people.  
  
While Qrow seems to be processing what you just said, you take another look around the room and see something you should have probably noticed when you first entered: gravestones. Two queues of them leaning against the wall near the entrance way. Their edges have nice etchings to them, but the center of the slab is completely blank, as if waiting for the name and epitaph to be carved.  
  
_So that Gravemaker comment wasn’t just a jeer, huh?_  
  
“I’ve known some people like you in the Guild,” Qrow finally speaks, making you look back at him. “How old are you?”  
  
“Twenty seven and counting,” you say in a proud tone.  
  
You know what he was probably going to say, you’ve heard this talk all the time from other veterans. And he doesn’t disappoint:  
  
“Twenty seven… must be a new record. You lot generally don’t last the first two years.”  
  
“Uncle!” Ruby finally speaks up, looking a bit offended for you.  
  
“I’m only speaking the truth. Hubris and a few stunts is the fastest way for one to leave the life of the Hunt on a coffin.”  
  
“Did you tell the same thing to mom when her ‘stunts’ saved your ass?”  
  
Silence.  
  
Qrow turns to Ruby, glaring at her. The young woman glares right back at him.  
  
You feel like you should leave. You’ve had enough experience with family discussions (both as a witness and as a participant) to know that they don’t need a third wheel.  
  
However, before you could get up, Qrow sighs and turns to you, speaking:  
  
“Forgive me. That was insensitive of my part. If you’ve lived all this time with that attitude, then you probably have a notion of what is what.”  
  
“Uncle!”  
  
“What?” Qrow now looks confused. You almost laugh at the expression. Almost...  
  
Ruby groans before turning to you:  
  
“Don’t mind my uncle. He’s been married to the job for as long as I’ve known him and doesn’t know how to talk to women,” Qrow mumbles something like “I do”, while crossing his arms and pouting like an overgrown toddler.  
  
“That’s fine. I’ve dealt with enough guys like him to known they speak the first thing that comes to their heads,” Ruby nods at you, while Qrow can be heard mumbling “I give up”.  
  
The red haired girl offers you some food and you accept. Going back to the kitchen you’re left alone with the older Huntsman once more. He appears a bit less serious as he speaks:  
  
“You should stay here and wait until the morning. Tonight is a night of Hunt. There’s going to be mobs and Church Hunters everywhere, patrolling the streets for Grimm.”  
  
“Thanks, but I would like to at least get to know the area before crashing in. Besides, I’ve already been to a few Hunts. I know how to be discreet.”  
  
“The same way you did when you arrived?” Ruby asks from the kitchen.  
  
“Wait, you saw that?”  
  
“I have the best eyes on the entire Yharnam. And it’s not every day you see a Nevermore fall out of the sky and impale itself on one of the towers.”  
  
“I know! That was badass, right?!”  
  
You can distinctively hear Qrow mumbling “Great… another one” in the background again. You decide he’s just like your Instructors; stuffy and no-fun. Seriously, who doesn’t appreciate the fine art of riding Grimm into their demise?  
  
Also, you can swear you heard Ruby saying something in a subdued and shy(?) tone:  
  
“Yeah, it was amazing…”  
  
“Anyway!” Qrow speaks up. “I’m in no condition to stop you if you’re really that determined, but if you get caught, I would appreciate it if you don’t mention we were helping you,” the tone of his voice and look tells you that is _not_ a suggestion.  
  
“Is this Dusk Church that bad?” you ask. From what you’ve heard, they sound more like incompetent and a little bit crazy rather than threatening.  
  
Ruby comes back with a plate full of food. It’s steaming and as it is put in front of you, you salivate at the delicious smell. The young woman takes a seat again and speaks as you attack the food:  
  
“Ever dealt with zealots and fanatics before?”  
  
“Noff that I’ff ref’fall,” you speak between mouthfuls. Ruby just smirks again, this time genuinely (you stop your attack on the plate for just a second).  
  
“Shallow first,” she chastises you with mirth.  
  
Qrow sighs and gets up, going to a desk nearby and opening one of the drawers. He lets out a gruff before turning to Ruby and speaking:  
  
“We’re out of medicine.”  
  
“What?” Ruby turns to him, looking apprehensive for the first time since you’ve met her. “Didn’t you ask for more the other day?”  
  
“Viola was going to bring it, but I haven’t seen her the entire day. I went to her home, but only her daughters were there and they haven’t seen her either.”  
  
Ruby looks very worried as her uncle speaks it. Biting her lip, you can see gears turning into her head. You finish eating and speaks:  
  
“This medicine of yours… is there a place nearby that sells it?”  
  
The two turn to you. Qrow keeps silent, but Ruby speaks:  
  
“They distribute it on Oedon’s Chapel at the one of the entrances to the Cathedral Ward. The fastest route is through one of the city’s bridges and those are always guarded during the Hunt.”

  
“Well, I have to repay you for helping me and for giving me such a tasty lunch,” you speak, bringing up your sunny smile again. “So, I can help you get that medicine you need.”

\- / - / - / - / - / - / - / -

After much insistence on your part (and swearing that you’re not going to cause a scene), Ruby let you accompany her to this Oedon Chapel. You promise to let her deal with any “Hunters” you meet and keep out of sight.  
  
As you two step out of the house the sunset paints Yharnam in an orange glow, which makes things look quite beautiful and poesy-worthy... if you ignore the burning things, moans and occasional roars that is.  
  
Ruby walks to a nearby gate and tries to open it. It doesn’t budge. Before you can offer help, she jumps, grabs the bars, somersaults over the portal and open it with a push from the other side. She makes a brief reverence to you as you pass, making you raise an eyebrow at her little show of acrobatics.  
  
“I could have opened it for you, you know?” you say.  
  
“No, you can’t,” Ruby explains. “Yharnam’s gates are made specifically to be heavy so they can withstand Grimm. To most people, it’s impossible to pull them open.”  
  
You walk to the gate, grabbing it with one hand and pulling and pushing it as it groans. Ruby’s eyes widen as she sees it.  
  
“You’re right. It’s a lot heavier than what I’m used to,” you muse as Ruby looks from you to the gate with wide eyes. You see that and ask what is wrong.  
  
“Do you have a super strength Semblance or something?”  
  
“Something like that, yes. But I didn’t use it.”  
  
Ruby keeps staring at you with wide eyes. You scratch behind your head.  
  
_This is getting awkward_. “Look… let's just go, ok?”  
  
The young woman in the crimson cape nods and takes point again as you two walk down to a balcony under a bridge. The architecture of the city is already making you dizzy from just trying to piece together a mental map of the place.  
  
You look ahead and see three Beowolves. Easy picking for a Huntress like you, but Ruby puts her hand in front of you and speaks with a smile:  
  
“My turn,” she unfolds the rifle she used before, takes aim and shoots the nearest monster.  
  
Strangely enough, you don’t hear the “ _crack_ ” one would normally hear from a gun as half of the head of the wolf Grimm practically explodes. Seriously, what kind of ammunition is she using?  
  
And where can you get some?  
  
As a result of the silent shot, the other Grimm look around, confused as they notice its brethren fall. That is all Ruby needs as she unfolds her scythe and quickly dashes to them, seeming to blur in your eyes. The Beowolves are sliced in half a second after finally noticing there is a crimson blur coming for them.  
  
Ruby then twirls her weapon, resting the blade’s tip on the ground and turns to you with an expectant smile. You carefully look at the dissolving Grimm corpses, appraising her handiwork:  
  
_Fast, precise and silent. She definitely isn’t a novice. And how did she make her weapon not emit any sound? Is that her Semblance?_  
  
“So…” Ruby asks, looking a bit anxious.  
  
“You pass,” you speak with a smile and mess her hair a bit. Ruby groans and bats your hand away a second too late to make it seem she didn’t enjoying it.  
  
You two continue and take an elevator at the end of the balcony, big enough to fit a handful of people and rattling loud enough to attract any Grimm in a small radius. After exiting the metal cage, you see a large bridge with flights of steps at each end right in front of you. To the right, you can see another long drop (is it that hard to fill the spaces in this city with _something_ so people won’t be under threat of falling to their deaths?) and what you can only guess are the sewers.  
  
You have been to maybe one or two cities half the apparent size of Yharnam and those had some form of water treatment and waste disposal for the populace. While it became a necessity, these generally were the favorite entry points for smart Grimm.  
  
“Oh no…” you hear Ruby whisper. Turning around and going up the stairs that lead to the bridge, you see why she she is distraught.  
  
Corpses. _Human_ corpses.  
  
They are leaning against, or propped up the fences of the bridge. There is blood all around the scene and other things that you would rather not spend too much time thinking about. You get closer to one to examine what could have possibly done this:  
  
_These cuts… they are too clean to be your normal Grimm. High level ones maybe? No, even they would have left a bigger mess._ “What do you think did this?” you look at Ruby. The young woman avoids your gaze as she answers.  
  
“Can you… go ahead? I would like to put them in a more… respectable position before burying them.”  
  
You notice how she changes the subject and the minute sings of someone hiding something. She knows, but she doesn’t seem inclined to tell you. You could press her for answers, stay around and force her to tell you what she is hiding since this creature could still be around, killing people.  
  
You’re about to tell her that, when Ruby beats you to the punch and says:  
  
“Look, just… trust me. It’s nothing really. We get these kinds of things all the time. Even more so on the eve of a night of Hunt.”  
  
She doesn’t seem to be lying. Besides, Ruby’s a big girl. She could take care of herself and it was just a short walk away.  
  
You nod and leave Ruby to do… whatever it is that she has to do. As you go up the steps on the other end of the bridge you see more corpses. Ignoring the ladder on the side, you continue up to another street and see the fading corpses of two Grimm amidst a pool of blood (weird… there doesn’t seem to be any human or Faunus corpses around. Also, there is a sound of metal meeting flesh in the distance).  
  
Another set of stairs on the claustrophobic, narrow walkway and you find yourself in front of a large arch leading to a cemetery bigger than the one you landed after your aerial excursion. There is even a large statue in the middle.  
  
(The sound of metal on flesh is louder. Are you getting closer?)  
  
You pass the arch…

 

\- / - **Gascoigne** \- / -

 

To you, graveyards are just another reminder that one day you will be joining the ranks of those killed by the Grimm. And since the monsters often don’t leave bodies behind, they would bury the scarf made by your father, which you were using even now, as a substitute and a symbol of what you’ve fought for.  
  
It was actually a part of the rite when one became a Hunter of the Guild; the new Hunter would tell which memento they would want to be buried in case their body couldn’t be recovered. This particular detail became a source of dark humor among some of the newbies and even veterans.  
  
You liked to look it in another way.  
  
_If life is short, might as well make it awesome. No use worrying about the next day and forget the now._  
  
That is the philosophy you’ve adopted for your life. It’s what kept you sane and walking forward through all these years. Still, that doesn’t make the place you are in now any less intimidating.  
  
The buildings on this part of town are so high and tightly packed that no sunlight reaches the earth. The monument at the center lends a creepy air to the space. As you walk in the direction of a set of stairs, you see somebody hunched near a wall.  
  
The sounds of blade on flesh you’ve been hearing come from this man as he brings his ax down a Grimm, again and again... even though you’re pretty sure the thing is already dead.  
  
Eventually, he stops and slowly straightens to his full height.  
  
You’ve always been considered tall. Hell, you don’t know any woman that is taller than you or of the same height. All the other veterans and guys that are taller than you are so by a few inches. Even Ruby’s uncle is only taller than you by a palm. This guy, however, towers over you.  
  
His ax is dripping blood as he grips it tightly. A black overcoat and a hat equally stained in the life liquid makes up for an intimidating figure. Also, you can feel something _wrong_ with his aura without even trying to sense it. You don’t know what it is because you’re pretty sure you’ve never felt anything like it before.  
  
Still, as the guy stops before you, you try not to think too hard on it. Instead, you face his brown eyes as he eyes you up and down.  
  
“You smell different,” he says in a deep baritone.  
  
“That’s not very nice. You don’t tell a girl she… wait,” you then confirm that, in fact, you haven’t taken a bath in a few days. This guy has a sharp nose. “Ok, never mind.”  
  
The stranger chuckles as he turns and starts to circle around you while speaking:  
  
“You’re not from Yharnam, I can tell. You’re probably not even affected. Yet...”  
  
“Uuuhhh?” you make a confused face, keeping your eyes on the guy. “What does that mean?”  
  
“That means you should leave as fast as you can... before it’s too late.”  
  
What is up with these guys? Do they think you can’t handle a few Grimm?  
  
“Look, I’m Huntress, ok? I can take care of a few Grimm.”  
  
“It’s not the Grimm you should be worried about. Not specifically…”  
  
“Alright, Mister Criptic Warning. Anything else I should know?”  
  
He is about to talk, but stops and starts to clutch his chest, groaning as if he is in intense pain. You drop your pose and ask if he’s alright.  
  
“Quick… run away…” he then lets go of his weapon and reaches into a pocket on his coat, bringing out a beautiful necklace with a red jewel in the center. “Take this… to Ruby Rose… she’ll know… what it means…” even in pain he still manages to throw it for you to catch.  
  
“Ruby. Wait! She’s nearby! I’ll get you some help!” you weren’t about to let somebody who is obviously in pain without assistance. With all the Grimm roaming around, it’s a death sentence.  
  
“NO!!!” [he](https://youtu.be/kA614N3IHD4) manages to shout, bringing his hand to his pocket once more and extracting some kind of syringe with a red liquid inside. “It’s… too late… for me…”  
  
Before you even ask, he stabs the syringe on himself, the liquid inside rapidly being pumped into his body. That seems to make the pain pass as he collapses on his knees. You lean forward and try to see if he’s alrig-  
  
“RRRAAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!” with a roar the man stands up, ax back in hand and a swing that would have cut you from the hips to your chest if you haven’t jump back on reflex.  
  
“WHAT THE FUCK?!?!?!” you let out.  
  
“It… didn’t… work… ?” the man speaks through gritted teeth (were his teeth always that sharp?). “I… can’t… hold… back…”  
  
“What the fuck are you talking about?!” you don’t understand anything that is going on.  
  
“Run… RuuunnNRRRRAAAAHHH!!!” the man jumps and tries to cleave you in two. Seeing he fails he presses his attack.  
  
You don’t understand what is happening, but one thing you've got; this guy’s apparently gone berserk and has to be pacified. You idly notice his aura is wavering violently, as if to reflect the state he’s in (why are his eyes so red?). You aren’t sure if it would shield him in case you go all out and use your blades.  
  
_I don’t want to hurt him._  
  
You store your weapons. Thankfully your Instructors drilled into you the art of unharmed combat and basic Aura enhancement. You don’t claim to be able to do the same as the most skilled Aura adepts, but with your Semblance backing you up you are certain you could take on some Grimm. As for a human man bigger than you?  
  
Well, time to find out. It wouldn’t be the first time you got into fisticuffs. The only difference is; this time you’re sober.  
  
The man advances and his attacks are fast and frantic, absolutely no skill involved. Just him trying his best to chop you to pieces. You give a few tentative punches on weak spots, but he doesn’t even seem to feel them. Ok, so maybe he’s...  
  
You dodge to the left as he brings a weapon to bear and tries to shoot you at point blank. A normal weapon wouldn’t have been that much of a problem. A shotgun on the other hand... let’s just say you would have a nasty hole in you if that dodge had come a second too late. As it is, it only grazes your side, but when you bring your hand to it you feel some blood on it before your aura starts closing the wound.  
  
For as much as you trained your Semblance, there is a fundamental weakness to it; it can’t absorb piercing and cutting attacks. That’s why you always close in on your enemy. Sure, some Grimm have spikes, mainly the older ones, but that’s also why you trained your Aura to give you some defense on this case.  
  
Going up against guns? That’s a whole different matter.  
  
Also, what’s up with those bullets? You did get hurt from bullets before, but those were mostly nasty bruises, not nearly enough to draw blood.  
  
The man roars again as he tries to cleave you. You decide to take this more seriously, bringing your knee to his face when he overextend his attack and hits him on the nose. He seems temporarily stunned and that gives you the opening you need.  
  
_Head. Knees. Shoulder. Belly._ your Instructors drilled into you all the weak points where you should hit. While this guy is bigger than you and has proven he can take a beating, he doesn’t seem to be able to weather your Semblance powered punches and kicks when carefully aimed at vital areas.  
  
Then he kicks you away and brings his shotgun to bear again. You jump back and put your arms up. The bullets still leave a stinging pain on your body, but at least they don’t turn you into swish cheese. The guy shots again and you jump back once more and... and you have incline your body back else your pretty head is separated from your shoulders.  
  
_Did his weapon get longer?_  
  
No, you aren’t imagining it.  
  
As the man swings his ax, now turned into a pole arm, and manages to cut you in your arms and knee, your Aura closing the wounds before he brings his weapon and shoots you again. This time aiming for your head.  
  
You bring your arms up and you feel _pain_. You’ve let he get close enough to use his gun without leaving a window to properly dodge. Your Unarmed Combat Instructor would want your head for this.  
  
_Ok, that’s it! Kid’s gloves off!_  
  
He swings again and this time you get inside his guard, letting the pole of the weapon hit you on your shoulder and feeling your Semblance absorbing the damage, pushing you to the side, but you quickly rebound and lunge for him again. He brings his shotgun up-  
  
_None of that anymore, pal!_  
  
\- only for you to grab it and turn it up, feeling the weapon kick with the strength of a charging Beowolf as it shoots. You bring your arm down on his shoulder joint, charging your punch with your Semblance, your glowing and waving as if made of flames.  
  
His left arm dislocates, making him howl in pain and let go of his weapon. Maybe he would learn now t- he swings his weapon in retaliation, faster than you thought possible for a man that had just experienced that kind of pain, this time hitting you in the face.  
  
If he had used both hands you would be a half-head shorter. Since he used only one, the swing is awkward, and lacking the necessary strength to break through your Aura and cut into the bone. It still hits you with enough strength to leave a nasty cut on your ear and cheek, so you have to wait a bit for your Aura to mend the skin back.  
  
You bring your free hand (the other is still clutching the shotgun) and feel for the wound, also feeling your hair and... it comes back with long, golden strands between on your fingers. You feel again and realize that part of it is _cut short._  
  
Your adversary sees you distracted and decides this is his chance to end the fight. However, what he doesn’t notice is that your eyes have gone red and your hair is definitely _glowing_ now. You lunge at him, your shoulder hitting him in the stomach as he doubles over and completely misses his swing.  
  
You follow up by punching him in the face with flames emanating from your fists as the secondary characteristic of your Semblance is activated. His hat is incinerated while still on his head and his nose breaks, blood spilling on your fist and boiling as the temperature around you raises.  
  
As the man bends back, you grab his arm and take him for a spin, making sure to hit his head on some conveniently tall gravestones (a small part of you tries to come up with a “stoned” pun). You throw him into that statue in the center of the graveyard and advance on him again, clutching his shotgun with your two hands, bringing it down on his knee with enough strength to shatter the gun.  
  
The man lets out a howl of pain as he goes down. You’re pretty sure you just broke his leg.  
  
“HAD ENOUGH?!?!?!” you challenge him, ready in case he decides to get up (or tries to. Really, you hit him pretty hard).  
  
Instead of answering or trying to attack again, the man starts to convulse on the ground, clutching his chest and sweating as if he has a fever. Your anger fades as you start to get worried- he turns to look at you, his eyes now completely red.  
  
There is a distorted roar and some sort of explosion that pushes you back. You can hear the sound of bones breaking and seemingly rearranging themselves as well as the man’s Aura… venting off?  
  
_What’s going on?!_ you can definitely feel his aura dispersing in the air and not like Aura adepts would do in an attack, but as if he’s _losing_ it.  
  
As the wind dies down and you look u-  
  
There’s a tall creature where once the man was. It stands like a man, but has fur, fangs and paws like a beast. However its presence is-  
  
(No way!)  
  
It has several patches of dark fur, some covering an entire limb, bleach-white bone plates on parts of its body and a half mask of the same material covering the left side of its face.  
  
(It wasn’t here before!)  
  
Red, glowing, mad eyes. Just like-  
  
(NO! This is _impossible_! It just doesn’t… !)  
  
It has an aura, but it’s so heavily distorted… you’ve never seen something like this. It feels _wrong_ in a fundamental level. Even more so with the presence-  
  
(It’s not a Grimm! It CAN’T be a Grimm!)  
  
The creature roars just like a Beowolf would. You don’t want to believe it, but as the thing jumps at you, you are forced to bring your arms up to defend yourself, completely forgetting you don’t have your weapons on.  
  
The Grimm (but it was a man before!) roars as its claws descend upon you, fast slashes that your Semblance is unable to absorb and only your Aura to defend against. You let out a scream of pain as you feel the thing tearing into your arms, your Aura failing after what felt like the fifth slash of claws.  
  
You jump back and see your arms are bleeding. Several cuts over them indicating that another attempt to defend like this would probably result in you losing them. Your Aura starts to act, but the healing is slow due to the extension of the damage. You look up and see the _thing_ jumping up and diving at you with the speed of a bullet.  
  
It’s only years of honed instincts and the capacity to unconsciously fight back that saves you from becoming a pretty stain in the floor as the former man (DON’T THINK LIKE THAT!!!) hits the floor with the force of a cannon ball.  
  
“STOP!!!” you try to talk to it, but it simply jumps upon you, relentlessly. Once more your instincts take over as your higher reasoning is still in a daze upon seeing-  
  
_DON’T THINK ON IT!!!_  
  
It kicks you. The power behind that kick is strong enough to send you crashing against one of the cluster of gravestones doting the graveyard. Before you can even get up, the thing is upon you again, grabbing your face and…  
  
Your body impacts the earth. It hurts. Even with your Semblance absorbing the damage it still hurts. It brings you up and slams you again, one, two, three times, until it throws you into the statue in the center of the graveyard, your body impacting it with enough strength to leave an impression.  
  
As you leave the hole you notice your arms feel heavy due to blood loss and your Aura broken. If you don’t act now, you _will_ die.  
  
Another roar sounds and the monster is upon you in a blink of an eye.  
  
“GET AWAY!!!” you punch it, as it gets close, putting you Semblance on it. You don’t aim, but the brute strength behind it is enough to send the Grimm recoiling back (you are pretty sure you’ve heard one of the bone plates shattering).  
  
From here on, everything that drives you is pure survival instinct as your eyes go red again with none of your early anger fueling it. There’s no finesse on your punches. No aim so to speak. It would almost be no different from flailing your arms at the monster, were it not for the fact your Semblance wreaths your arms in flames to give it the extra kick necessary to stagger the thing.  
  
Still, the beast doesn’t stop (when had Grimm ever stopped?).  
  
It stomps on you, its towering size allowing it to bring you down. You fail to see it coming in your panic (HAVE TO FINISH THIS OR YOU'LL DIE!!!). Before you can get up the Grimm-that-was-once-a-man (DON’T THINK ON THAT!!!) joins its hand and bring them down on your head.  
  
Your Semblance charges up again, absorbing the hit. It hurts, but at least your skull doesn’t shatter like anyone else would if they received a blow like this.  
  
You feel the thing taking its paws away from your back and you immediately jump to your feet, pure instinct driving you this time. You almost fall flat on your face as you feel dizzy, the impact having left your head buzzing.  
  
Another attack like that and once the Grimm (please... no...) realizes its claws work better you will be done for, Semblance notwithstanding.  
  
You look up and see the thing bringing its arm back to punch you in the face. Fangs dripping with saliva and blood and its mad, red eyes shinning with malice as it looks over you. You can’t see any trace of intelligence in those eyes.  
  
It _is_ the eyes of a Grimm... and that realization scares you the most. It scares you so much you don’t even think as you bring your arm back and charge it with all the energy your Semblance stored, flames wreathing it again.  
  
Your fist meets the half-Grimm’s...  
  
You’ve only punched something with the all the stored energy of your Semblance once. The result had been _explosive_ , just like now.  
  
The energy doesn’t simply enhance your punch. It actually seeps into your target upon contact, accumulating inside the body part you’ve hit and exploding inside of it. This results is the arm that was about to knock you out blowing up as the bones are supercharged with the energy of your Semblance and the fragments shoot out of it like bullets, turning the arm into a bloody mess.  
  
If that had been its head, it would have been a very brutal way to die.  
  
However, there is one fatal flaw in using this technique; it completely removes the absorption of your Semblance for a time, so it should only be used as a last resort. As it is, while you’ve destroyed your target’s arm, it didn’t protect yours from its attack and the result is your arm’s bone dislocates, piercing your skin as you _howl_ in more pain than you’ve ever felt in your life.  
  
You then get punched with enough strength to send you flying into one of those fences around the graveyard. A part of you, the one that isn’t in intense pain, notices the Grimm-man (stop… thinking… it...) punched you with its other arm. The one that you’ve hit is simply a fleshy strip hanging on its side, as it doesn’t even pay attention to it (Grimm don’t feel pain…).  
  
The monster stalks over to you. You’re still under intense pain, barely able to move and your Aura is nothing at this point.  
  
_I… I’m going to die … just like this?_ you can only grit your teeth while seeing the creature that was once a man (it shouldn’t be standing after that blow. Any man would have collapsed already) slowly walking up to you as it shows its claws, ready to tear you to ribbons. _I’m… sorry… dad…_  
  
“YANG!!!” a shout and suddenly the mask on the half-Grimm’s face shatters, blood coming out as it recoils and looks at who dares to attack it.  
  
You look too, but only in time to see a red blur and the distinctive shine of metal as the monster tries to lunge at its attacker. Then the half-Grimm’s arm falls off its socket as the red blur comes to a halt after passing by the thing.  
  
A red cape. Black hair with red highlights... silver eyes…  
  
“Ruby…” you croak, feeling so tired. Your head is spinning and the sensation on your arm makes you want to just pass out.  
  
She doesn’t turn to look at you, keeping her eyes locked on the monster that doesn’t seem to mind it no longer has arms as it tries to bit her head off… only for her to draw her rifle faster than your eyes can followed and put it on its mouth.  
  
You see her lips moving, but her words sound slurred.  
  
Finally, her weapon lets out a “CRACK” and half the head of the monster is gone. Bone, blood and gray things you guess is brain matter splatter around as the thing finally keels over.  
  
You can barely make your eyes stay open.  
  
You feel so tired.  
  
You can hear Ruby calling out your name, sounding desperate, but…  
  
Darkness claims you…


	4. Cursed and Plagued

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yang comes to realize her mission is no longer as simple as it once were...

**Ruby Rose**

Age: 24

Father: ???

Mother: Huntress Summer (deceased)

Affiliation: - - - -

Rank: - - - -

Reputation: Gravemaker, Crimson Sweeper, Silent Embrace

 

  _As I scatter to the winds, I pray that you accept... this gentle, cold embrace... to rid you from your pain..._

 

Brought to Yharnam when she was still young by her mother and her uncle, Hunter of Hunters Qrow, to be treated from a disease contracted during their travel, Ruby Rose has lived in Yharnam for as long as she can remember. With their original home village destroyed by the Grimm, Summer and Qrow, with the help of a local doctor, Iosefka, managed to affiliate themselves with the Yharnam division of the Hunter's Guild and obtain a job and home.

Faced with the common discrimination the Yharnamites dispense to foreigners, Ruby passed most of her childhood reading and training with her mother, uncle and, latter, local Guild instructor and liaison between the Guild and the Dusk Church, Father Gascoigne. Upon unlocking her Semblance, which allowed her to pass undetected by nullifying any sound, smell, heat or her own presence from others, Ruby received a recommendation to join the Guild.

However, as Ruby completed 17, Yharnam's political scenario soon changed with the sudden death of Byrgenwerth's esteemed headmaster, Provost Willem. Being too young to understand, Ruby could only watch as the Yharnam division of the Hunter's Guild came under suspicion by Master Willem's two apprentices and was subsequently disbanded. As the situation further deteriorated, her mother joining the ranks of those missing and uncle getting infected by the plague, Ruby was forced to enlist as an impromptu Hunter in the Church's Nightly Hunts, take the Blood and earn the necessary treatment for her only living family left.

 

**Hunter Qrow**

Age: 38

Sister-in-law: Huntress Summer (deceased)

Affiliation: Hunters of Hunters - Yharnam Division (disbanded).

Rank: Senior

Reputation: Sinister Hewer, Tactless Idiot (Oh, c'mon!)

 

    _With one hand, I take yours to pull you out of the abyss... with another, I grip my weapon tightly... in the event of what I’m pulling is no longer_ you.

 

A senior member of the now defunct Yharnam Division of the Hunter's Guild, Hunter of Hunters Qrow still lends his services as one of those that hunts the Huntsmen too far gone to be recovered, making sure they can no longer hurt others. His partner was Eileen, who to this day keeps a watch over him and Ruby as a favor both to him and Huntress Summer.

As the one that instructed Ruby Rose into the scythe, Qrow also taught her the philosophy and duties of a Hunter of Hunters when the girl discovered the truth about the Yharnam plague. While knowing this would set her on a path towards a thankless job, Qrow could at least sleep at night knowing Ruby would be able to defend against both Grimm and human opponents.

When the signs of the plague started to manifest on himself, Qrow also instructed Ruby on how to fight him and kill him and purposely crippled his scythe arm, so she would have an extra edge when he finally became unable to fight off the effects of the transformation.

 

* * *

   
  
“Is she going to be alright?”  
  
“I already told you, she’s going to be fine...”  
  
You can hear voices around you. There is also a faint echo, indicating you’re in a big, enclosed space.  
  
“But there was so much blood and-”  
  
“You do remember you saw things just as bad before, right?”  
  
“Um… Ruby… wouldn’t it be better if you bury those poor men and that woman you found? Velvet and I can take care of the Huntress and call you if anything happens.”  
  
There’s a bit of shuffling of cloth.  
  
You try to open your eyes, but you are so... tired…  
  
…  
  
_Blood.  
  
A man screams in agony…  
  
So much blood.  
  
His skin peels off, bones cracking and rearranging, reveling a beast underneath…  
  
The beast has bone plates on its body and a white, bone mask with red lines on it…  
  
Why does it bleed?  
  
It feels just like a Grimm…_  
  
You wake up with a jolt, almost hitting somebody close by. You try bringing your right arm to your head, but notice it’s on a sling. Before you can wonder, the memories come back and…  
  
“Oh, you’re awake,” you look to your side and see… well, you’re not entirely sure. It looks like a shriveled corpse, but it’s breathing and moving. “Are you feeling alright?”  
  
“You gave us a big scare when Ruby brought you, miss Huntress.”  
  
You look at the second person that talked and she, at least, looks normal. Except that she is wearing some black and white robes and has two, brown, bunny ears poking from atop her head. A Faunus woman. Other than that, she looks quite cute with her big, dark-brown eyes and brown, shoulder-length hair.  
  
You look around and, as you’ve guessed, you’re inside some kind of big structure. There’s cloths the size of flags draping from the ceiling to the floor and candles lighting the place.  
  
“Where am I?” you ask. “And were you the ones that treat me?” you move your arm a bit. It still hurts, but nothing like the blinding pain you’ve felt back in your fight against…  
  
(You don’t want to think about that yet.)  
  
“I did,” the bunny girl says, a big smile on her face. “I’m Velvet. A nun of the Dusk Church. I help Daniel with taking care of any refugees that come to this place, Oedon Chapel.”  
  
You look at the… guy and thank him. Although, you do wonder how they did that. You’ve seen injuries like yours before and they generally take months to heal even with Aura helping. Yours is feeling like just a sprained muscle now. When you ask them how they did that, Daniel tells you:  
  
“You should thank Velvet. Her Semblance works miracles on cases like yours.”  
  
You look at the bunny girl, who blushes under the praise (why do all the girls in this place look so cute?).  
  
“It’s nothing, really. My Semblance allows me to amplify the healing properties of one’s Aura. Since your arm hadn’t been amputated, I was able to help regenerate the muscles and nerves that were severed.”  
  
You whistle at that. A Semblance like that is beyond useful. If the Guilt had people with this Faunus woman’s Semblance, they certainly wouldn’t be losing so many Huntsmen on Hunts.  
  
“How long was I out?” you ask, trying to stall so you won’t think on _that_.  
  
“About two hours, I think,” Velvet says. “It’s already night and the Church Hunters patrol the streets.”  
  
Speaking of Hunters, you imagine if that guy was- you shake your head, but the thought is still there.  
  
“Um… did Ruby… tell you what happened?” you decide to start slow.  
  
“She said you were attacked by a freshly turned,” Daniel says. “I wonder who that poor soul was.”  
  
“You mean… that guy really turned into a Grimm?”  
  
You feel sick just uttering those words. If the implications are true then…  
  
“Wait. You didn’t know?” Velvet looks concerned as she ascertains that. “Oh my…”  
  
“So… Grimm really are…”  
  
“Yang!” you turn as you hear your name being called right in time for Ruby to give you a hug. Thankfully, your arm no longer hurts. “Are you ok?! You’re not hurt are you? Please tell me that thing didn’t do any permanent damage!”  
  
Her speech is fast and you can’t help, but smile at how this young woman is worried about you. You mess with her hair a bit again, making her pout at you (why does she have to look so cute?).  
  
“Relax. Velvet here patched me up. I feel a lot better.”  
  
Ruby’s mood seems to improve and that reminds you:  
  
“Oh, also that guy asked me to…” you then remember this woman killed him without even batting an eye. You gulp, but try to put off that thought for latter. “Um… here,” you bring out the jewel that guy gave you.  
  
Ruby looks at it in confusion before her eyes light up in recognition as she takes the jewel.  
  
“Gascoigne…” you hear her whisper. Velvet and Daniel both seem to gasp at that.  
  
“He had been getting worse in the last days… to think he finally succumbed,” Daniel speaks as Velvet seems to join her hands and prayer for the now deceased man.  
  
“So… you knew the guy, yet you killed him,” you didn’t mean to sound that accusatory, but it slipped into your tone either way.  
  
When Ruby looks down in what you recognize as mourning, you immediately regret what you’ve just said. However, before you can apologize, Ruby speaks up:  
  
“I guess I owe you an explanation since you saw him turning, right?”  
  
You simply nod, still confused about what you should feel in this situation. Besides, these guys seemed to know what the hell is going on and-  
  
_It’s not the Grimm you should be worried about..._  
  
That guy, Gascoigne, said that before he... the way that he spoke... how _long_ has this been going on?  
  
“First of all: when did this start? You speak like this is a recurring thing.” you start. Ruby shrugs before answering.  
  
“Dunno. Some say the disappearances started first. Others say that it did at the same time. It became so common place that I even forgot. Any idea Velvet?” she turned to the rabbit Faunus.  
  
Velvet thinks for some time before answering to you:  
  
“About three years. That was when the first sightings of Grimm inside the walls were reported. From then on, the quantity just got bigger until one year and a half ago the Church had to start organizing Hunts.”  
  
“We didn’t know then what exactly was happening, only that Grimm were appearing inside the city,” Ruby speaks. “It was only during the first Hunt that... one of the Hunters turned. My uncle was in that group after they had practically dragged him back, saying they needed his experience.  
  
“When he came home he was... I never saw him like that. I just came to know latter what was happening. As in, saw somebody turning in front of me. It was just the training from my uncle and Gascoigne that saved me.”  
  
Ruby sits on the steps nearby as you also sit back on the futon that you had been laying on, feeling this is going to be a long talk.  
  
“So… this is happening only on Yharnam, right?” you ask the question that has been plaguing you for quite sometime.  
  
Ruby shrugs, saying she has lived in Yharnam most of her life, so she doesn’t know any other place to compare. You sigh, sensing you’ll probably have to speak with Qrow.  
  
“Alright, any idea _why_ this is happening?”  
  
“No. When we found out, the Church threatened us into silence. It seems they don’t want to spread panic,” Ruby’s eyes harden as she speaks that. She obviously doesn’t think that’s the real reason, or the only one. "Way to go, considering the situation nowadays."  
  
“I’ve heard they commissioned a study on this from Byrgenwerth,” Velvet speaks.  
  
“Yeah… considering they keep everything under lock and key, Yharnam will probably be overrun before they decide to get off their high horse and actually talk.”  
  
You fell like you’re starting to get a clearer picture on how these Church and Byrmeworf guys act. You decide you’ll punch one of them when you find them, diplomatic relationships be damned.  
  
Another thought comes to you and this one makes you gulp as you think on its implications:  
  
“They said the city’s gates were sealed off. It was to stop the spreading of this… plague, right? That means I could be infected already.”  
  
“No, you’re not,” Daniel says, making you look at him in askance. “Believe in me, I know. The infected have slight distortions on their Aura, almost imperceptible on the early stages. It gets worse as they deteriorate, until they completely lose almost all of their Aura. Yours doesn’t show any imperfections as far as I can tell.”  
  
“Daniel is one of the oldest citizens we know,” Velvet says. “He used to be a powerful Aura expert.”  
  
“Remember that I said I had the best eyes in Yharnam?” Ruby says, her smile returning. “Well, you could say Daniel here is a close second.”  
  
“Oh, I’m… I’m not all of that.”  
  
He seems quite flustered at the compliment, which makes you smile together with the other girls. Daniel seems an “ok” guy in your books. You wonder what happened for him to… get like this.  
  
Either way, it was good knowing you weren’t going to turn into a Grimm (yet).  
  
“In all seriousness…” Ruby speaks up, turning to you and her smile dropping for a serious look. “You should leave before you get infected. I don’t how many Grimm in Yharnam are turned and from the way you spoke, you’ve never killed men before. We can take care of that. Cleaning the streets is my job.”  
  
“You shouldn’t take it that serious when people call you ‘Crimson Sweeper’, Ruby,” Velvet says.  
  
“I should do anything I can to help... before I join them. And it doesn’t bother me really. 'Crimson Sweeper' sounds kinda badass,” she gives a smirk to the rabbit Faunus, who sighs, but also shows a smile.  
  
That’s when it dawns on you: each and every person you spoke to is probably infect with this plague. Ruby, Qrow, Velvet, Daniel… how long do they have before joining the ranks of those monsters? Your throat suddenly feels dry.  
  
“Are there any… signs I should be looking for?” you ask, making the trio look back at you. You give them a bittersweet smile, the one you reserved for when speaking of morbid subjects while trying to make it look like you were ok with the idea. “I mean, who is to say this plague doesn’t transmit through air, or fluids, or something? I could probably get infected while on my way out and transmit it to the rest of the people out of Yharnam.”  
  
The reactions you get are varied. Velvet seems unsure and a bit fearful for you. Daniel seems to be smiling (that’s a smile, right?) a bittersweet smile. Ruby gives you an encouraging smile, although her eyes tell a different story.  
  
“There are some signs..." Velvet speaks up. "But some cases are different than others, so this pattern is not always reliable. Either way, people that are about to turn start getting more aggressive, unable to differentiate friend from foe. Then their eyes start to take a red tint, becoming more like a Grimm’s-”  
  
_His eyes are completely overtaken by red, almost seeming to glow. The pupils are barely visible from this angle...  
  
He turns to look at you, his eyes now completely red…  
  
Red, glowing, mad eyes. Just like-_  
  
You shake your head to dispel the memories. Velvet looks confused. You apologize and tell her to continue.  
  
“After that they transform. Not into a Grimm right away. It’s like something in between. A half-Grimm if you could call it even that. In this state, they are not human anymore and will attack any non-Grimm being on sight. Friends.... loved ones... they’ll prey on them and kill if they get the chance.”  
  
“Let me guess: you have to put them down, so they don’t become a threat to anybody else,” the others nod.  
  
Unbidden by your will, you wonder what would be like becoming a Grimm and attacking your father. You banish the thought immediately, knowing you would sooner hand yourself over to your mother to be put you down than that.  
  
_It was supposed to be a simple mission… when did it became a horror story setting?_  
  
“Oh, by the way, Ruby,” Daniel speaks, catching the attention of the crimson wearing girl. “Here’s the medicine for Qrow. How’s him?”  
  
You look up and remember why you came here in the first place. You grimace, feeling like an extreme jackass. Ruby’s uncle is in the same situation as Gascoigne and you doubt the old Huntsman would want to transform into a Grimm and harm his niece. He would probably off himself first.  
  
“He’s… not good. The medicine doesn’t seem to be doing much now,” Ruby’s head lowers as she speaks that.  
  
“Oh… I-I’m sorry. I wish there was more I could do, but this medicine is the only thing I know how to make. Without knowing what’s causing the plague...”  
  
“Maybe he could use the Blood? Isn’t there a clinic near your house that distributes it?” Velvet offers and that rings something on your mind, but you can’t remember what exactly.  
  
“I tried to convince him, but he refused. Says that if he gets sick even after using it, than it doesn’t work. Uncle Qrow can be as stubborn as a mule when he wants to,” Ruby gives a rueful laugh at that. “Besides, Blood is more like an stimulant anyway. He thinks that if he’s going to turn, he should at least be weak so he can be killed fast in case he can’t do it himself.”  
  
All you can do is feel progressively sicker as this younger woman speaks about putting down her family with a look of resigned acceptance…

After a short few hours of treatment under Velvet, your arm is good again and you and Ruby bid the two chapel dwellers farewell.  
  
According to Ruby the Hunt is in full swing, so you have to be quick, otherwise the enlisted civilians or, God forbid it, the Church Hunters can catch you. Apparently, there’s a huge difference between the two.  
  
On the way, you pass by that graveyard where you've fought Gascoigne. You idly note two graves that look newly polished. One has a familiar weapon in its ax form leaning against it.  
  
You feel sick once more.  
  
“We didn’t have a choice,” Ruby speaks, taking notice of your slowed pace. “He would have preferred it that way. He already killed Viola, and I know he would sooner burn himself than go after his girls.”  
  
That does it.  
  
While you appreciate Ruby’s concern that doesn’t exactly alleviate the guilt you feel. In fact, that last sentence breaks it for you as you run to the nearest fence and lean over it as you vomit the lunch you’ve had earlier. When there is nothing left on your stomach you start heaving.  
  
You’ve never killed somebody before, at least not directly. You did sometimes help arrest Huntsmen gone rouge, fully knowing what the Hunters of Hunters would do to them, but those guys were always scum that tormented people that couldn’t defend themselves or worse.  
  
The Guild had always been adamant on the separation of roles in these cases; Hunters should hunt Grimm, so they could be the heroes that gave the people hope, so it wouldn't attract more. Hunters of Hunters were the ones that undertook the necessary job of hunting down those that fell to their dark instincts, earning no glory for themselves. You’ve always took solace on that fact, knowing that even in the most grave of cases, when the Guild had to assign a Hunter to assist the Hunters of Hunters, the quarry was somebody irredeemable.  
  
Grimm-in-men’s-skin is how that filth is called.  
  
But taking the life of an innocent... somebody that had family, possibly children… how many “people” have you killed during your brief stay in Yharnam?  
  
You feel a hand trace gentle circles on your back, the soothing motion calming you down, little by little. You don’t look back at Ruby for quite some time, but you eventually wipe the bile off your mouth with your sleeve and apologize for that.  
  
“It’s ok,” there’s something else the crimson wearing, young woman wants to say, you can feel it.  
  
“Ruby… are you…” you almost feel like throwing up again as the thought comes to you. “Are you also infected?”  
  
There is some silence after that question. Ruby looks to the side, but doesn’t take her hand away from your back.  
  
“Yeah...”  
  
Nothing else needs to be said.  
  
“I’m sorry,” you speak again. Ruby throws you a confused look. “For talking to you like that back there.”  
  
“It’s ok,” Ruby shakes her head at that as you two start walking again. “I should be the one to apologize to you. I should have explained it to you, when you went forward as I was preparing the corpses. Some people show signs of being dead before turning. So, to make sure they won’t really come back as Grimm you have to decapitate them.”  
  
“Personal experience?” you ask, to which Ruby nods.  
  
You two stay silent till you get in the elevator to the Upper District of Central Yharnam. Ruby scouts ahead and calls you over once she sees the coast is clear. Arriving at Ruby’s home, you two are received by Qrow, who takes in your appearance before asking:  
  
“What happened? And why do you smell of bile?”  
  
He really doesn’t have any tact, much less when worried.  
  
“We’ve… run into Gascoigne…” Ruby says, taking the red jewel from her pocket and handing it to Qrow.  
  
His eyes widen and take a glint of one who recognizes the significance of what was just handed to him. He nods and takes it as he looks over to you, asking:  
  
“You saw him turning, didn’t you?”  
  
You can only nod.  
  
“Go take a bath and gather your things, I’ll call somebody by the morning to take you to the gates.”  
  
You look up as Qrow says that. His tone leaves no room for argument. However, Ruby looks back and forth between you two before saying:  
  
“But… Uncle Qrow…”  
  
“No, Ruby! This is a Hunter’s matter. So please, stay out of it.”  
  
Ruby looks like she wants to argue. You can see her puffing up her cheeks to retort… but eventually deflates and yields. As much training as she has received, the matter of fact is: Ruby isn’t a true Huntress. And even if she was, Qrow is the senior here, both by years of service and time in the city. By Guild procedure, you would be reporting to him.  
  
“You’re not infected, are you?” Qrow directs the question at you, which you find yourself nodding to. He can really be intimidating when he wants to.  
  
“That guy on Oedon’s Chapel… Daniel I think, said I was clean.”  
  
“Good. In that case you can depart first thing in the morning.”  
  
“But…”  
  
“Yharnam is a cursed and doomed city, Huntress Yang,” Qrow says in a tone of finality. “More and more citizens turning into Grimm, even the ones drafted as impromptu Huntsmen… there will soon not be enough people to maintain it. And considering it’s quite difficult to find someone who _isn’t_ infected, I’m willing to bet it’s a matter of time before it becomes the largest Grimm nest in Remnant’s history.”  
  
He coughs at the end of that sentence and quickly Ruby passes the medicine to him. Your temper starts to flare as you speak:  
  
“So, it’s okay to simply consider the entire city lost and give up, is that it?”  
  
“I don’t think I stuttered.”  
  
“Even if that includes your niece?!” you can feel your eyes turning a crimson color.  
  
Ruby looks nervously around, twiddling her fingers. She seems to wants to speak, but refrains from doing so. Qrow, however, affirms:  
  
“Ruby is prepared to do what has to be done. It’s what I trained her for when this started.”  
  
That… actually makes you stop.  
  
Qrow’s eyes… there is something familiar to them. Almost like-  
  
_Red eyes. Just like yours, but with no warmth to them. No fire...  
  
They are cold even as they look at you. As if you are _ something _else. A stranger. An assignment. Maybe even a threat...  
  
You used to pray that they looked differently at you…_  
  
“With one hand, I take yours to pull you out of the abyss...” you start.  
  
“With another, I grip my weapon tightly. In the event of what I’m pulling is no longer _you_ ,” Qrow completes not a moment too soon, with the familiarity of one who recites this verse on a daily basis. After all, this is the oath that is drilled into them since day one. The oath that describes _them_ and what they do.  
  
“Hunter of Hunters…” you almost growl out the name.  
  
Qrow doesn’t say anything. Just continues to stare at you with those cold eyes. You have yet to find any Hunter of Hunters that doesn’t possess eyes like this; eyes of one that can detach himself completely of any bounds, no matter which. The eyes that you came to identify as the ones of an executor. A cold-blooded killer.  
  
(But he had looked at Ruby with different eyes before, right? Is that only with _you_?)  
  
“If you’re done, I suggest you clean yourself,” Qrow says in a tone of someone who dismisses after a briefing.  
  
Ruby indicates to you a free room with a bathroom and you follow her instructions, pointedly ignoring Qrow for the rest of the night.  
  
It’s useless to talk to people like him about these subjects.  
  
You go into the bedroom, strip out of your blood-soaked clothes and quickly enter the chilling shower. You don’t mind the temperature. You’ve taken baths colder than this before.  
  
After the cold water calms down your boiling blood, you start thinking back on everything that happened. You don’t get nearly has sick as you’ve been before, but your stomach still churns (it’s just like back then, when your mother...).  
  
You shake your head and resist the urge to punch a hole into the marble wall, instead focusing on cleaning yourself of any... things that might be sticking to your skin and hair. You idly notice the thin scars on your arms, marking that you survived the encounter with Gascoigne. They are an addition to the ones that are located on your knuckles, lower abdomen, legs and back.  
  
You might not mind the stares that you get from other women when you have to walk around with your scars on show, but that doesn’t mean you like to exhibit them to others. These speak about your mistakes and hardships. Nobody has anything to do with those.  
  
Finishing the shower, you take a towel and quickly go into the adjacent bedroom to find Ruby leaving some clothes for you on the bed. The young woman looks up at you... and looks away, blushing. You raise your eyebrow in confusion before realizing why she’s so flustered.  
  
“I’ve... brought you some of my clothes. I... hope they fit,” Ruby says (you catch her briefly looking at your chest).  
  
“Thanks.”  
  
“I also took your clothes to wash. They should be ready by the morning,” Ruby turns completely once she notices you taking the clothes she offered.  
  
You don’t speak as you dress, but eventually...  
  
“They’re a bit tight,” you remark.  
  
“Where?” Ruby looks at you.  
  
You try hard, you really try... but the situation just calls for it.  
  
“Here,” you point at your bosom with a saucy smile.  
  
Ruby shows that she is capable of matching her namesake before she hastily turns around. You try very hard not to giggle as she sputters a bit.  
  
It’s not that you’re an exhibitionist or anything, but seeing other girls reacting to the fact that your boobs are bigger than theirs is just so amusing. And you could use a good laugh right now.  
  
“C’mon. We’re all girls here. No need to get... _ruby_ on me _.”_  
  
A beat...  
  
Ruby looks back at you, inclining her head and looking pretty confused. Previous embarrassment forgotten.  
  
_Yep, still got it._  
  
As Ruby’s mind slowly reboots, you hear a banging outside the window of this room. You turn to see a Grimm pressing against the grates around the glass. However this Grimm has some skin peeling off its face and part of its arms and torso still has come clothing and brown fur.  
  
Before you can get to your weapons, something juts out of the Grimm’s throat. It looks like a needle-thin blade. The Grimm gurgles as the blade retracts and reappears again and again from various parts of the monster’s body.  
  
A beat latter and the monster is sliced to bits, some droplets of blood tinting the window’s glass. As the creature falls, you see a figure on the street wearing a black garb with white gloves and a black hood sheathing his thin blade. The person looks up and, for a moment, you see a smirk and one pink eye while the other-  
  
The curtain closes as Ruby quickly gets to the other window to do the same.  
  
“Church Hunter,” she says. “Really nasty sorts, these ones garbed in black. They have _carte blanché_ to investigate and apprehend anybody they deem is about to turn.”  
  
“Are they hired, or what?” you ask.  
  
“Some were originally part of the Guild before it was disbanded. Others were trained by the Executioners... the Church’s soldiers before you ask. Most are just people drafted into the Hunts and get the post based on most confirmed kills.”  
  
Ruby talked about them with venom on her tongue, like she had some sort of grudge against them. You ask why she sounds like she has a bone to pick with those guys, to which she answers:  
  
“The ‘confirmed kills’ happen to include ‘potential infected’. And when you gain prestige and authority by becoming a Church Hunter... guess how quick some were to abuse the system? Even against potential rivals.”  
  
You grimace at that, getting her point. You’ve read a profile on some Huntsmen and Huntresses that acted like that. Not the “infected” part, but forging a situation to incriminate some rival or grudge in the eyes of the Guild's Old Hunters Council.  
  
“I’ve lost the count of the number of times my uncle and I had to tiptoe around these guys. They are very quick to find an excuse to label you an infected just to get those kills for their position.”  
  
While you don’t necessarily feel bad for Qrow, you do not like the fact that these guys sacrifice innocent people just to improve their standing. Not one bit.  
  
Yharnam keeps sounding worse and worse as you stay here...

\- / - / - / - / - / - / - / - / -

You have nightmares of people you know turning into Grimm; their flesh falling off their bodies, slowly giving way to bleach-white, bone plates and dark fur. Their bodies bleed torrents of blood as you punch them, their eyes all looking at you accusingly and reverting back to normal right before you crush their skulls with your fists.  
  
You wake up several times, sweating and cursing at the images your subconscious projects. Exhaustion claims you, only for nightmare land to greet you once more. The terror doesn’t wear off until the third time your eyes shoot open.  
  
The morning eventually comes.  
  
Waking up for the final time you stretch your arms and look around, quickly remembering where you are and...  
  
There’s a plate with bacon and eggs on a nearby table and farther away you see your clothes hanging on the open closet. You smile at the sight, already guessing who’s responsible for this.  
  
After devouring breakfast and dressing , you exit the bedroom and go back to the living room of the house. Ruby is there, sipping at a coffee mug. You give your best smile as you greet her.  
  
“Hi Yang,” Ruby greets you back as you sit on the desk near her, looking around before asking, your tone dropping down.  
  
“Where’s mister Grumpy?” to your delight Ruby giggles at the nickname.  
  
“He went to call a friend and plan how to get you out of the city unnoticed.”  
  
“Another Hunter of Hunters?” Ruby nods.  
  
There’s a bit of silence, only broken by Ruby sipping her coffee again. The crimson wearing woman then asks:  
  
“You… don’t like them very much, do you?”  
  
“Who?”  
  
Ruby gives you a pointed look that practically spells “is it not obvious?”. You sigh. No use in playing dumb around her it seems.  
  
“You could say that,” you admit.  
  
“Do you… hate them?” Ruby asks, in a cautious tone.  
  
“Hate is… too strong a word for this. I think you could say I dislike them.”  
  
“Do you dislike me too?”  
  
You look at Ruby, seeing that she is gazing at her coffee mug. She looks positively downcast. You quickly reply:  
  
“Why would I? You’re not a Hunter of Hunt-”  
  
“But I was trained as one,” Ruby interrupts you. “My uncle always said his job is a thankless one, but necessary. And when Yharnam fell to the plague, with people turning Grimm left and right, just hunting them when they turn wouldn’t be enough.”  
  
You want to argue, but these kinds of discussions had a tendency to inflame a particular side of you that was quick to make things escalate. That is why you never participated in discussions about the morality surrounding the job of those involved in the life of the Hunt. You always tended to argue better with your fists than with words, so you leave the fight of words for those better prepared for it.  
  
“You know…” Ruby continues. “I never thought about the differences between the roles of Hunters and Hunters of Hunters when I wanted to be a Huntress. I just wanted to help people...”  
  
Ruby stops for a moment, takes a deep breath and continues:  
  
“Anyway, when I came to the same conclusion that you came; that I had actually fought and murdered somebody, I locked myself in my room and never wanted to come out. Mom was still around and I remember her saying something that stuck with me. It’s the reason I can still fight those things out there.  
  
“She said, ‘Imagine how they feel... how these people feel upon turning into Grimm. They know what they’re becoming. Know that they will hunt and kill others. If there is something of them left in there, then it must be even worse. Watching your body attacking your loved ones as you have no control over it... it must be like a waking nightmare’.”  
  
There’s silence after that on your part as you process what was just said. Still, there is one question you have to ask:  
  
“Do you believe that?”  
  
“Yes. Because so far, everybody that I know as repeatedly stated that, should they ever become a Grimm, they would want to be killed as soon as possible if they aren’t able to do so themselves. Just like I would ask the same from them.”  
  
Another silence. You then decide to do something you should have done since the beginning of this whole mess; you hug Ruby. The young woman looks surprised at first, blushing. Then she hesitantly hugs you back as she asks:  
  
“Um… what’s this about?”  
  
“You’re a very strong girl, Ruby…” you speak as you lean back to look at Ruby’s confused and flustered face. You then speak with a smile. “Besides, somebody cute like you deserves a hug every now and then.”  
  
And Ruby continues to show why her name’s the same as the color. She looks down as she fiddles with her index fingers in embarrassment while mumbling:  
  
“I’m… not cute. I’m an adult.”  
  
“So? Doesn’t mean you can’t be a cute adult,” you tease, giving her a wink. Ruby takes her hood and covers her face with it.  
  
You laugh. It feels really good to finally laugh at something.  
  
The moment is over when the door opens and Qrow enters with someone wearing a feathered cloak, a conic hat and a beak mask. He sees you and his embarrassed niece and glares. You glare back. Ruby eventually looks up from her cloak and gulps at seeing the tense scene.  
  
The newcomer scoffs and speaks up in a feminine voice:  
  
“Aren’t you two a bit too old to play the whole ‘overprotective family member’ routine?”  
  
Qrow turns his glare at his companion, but it’s a bit hard to know how effective it is considering the mask she’s wearing. Even so, you can tell she must be rolling her eyes. The woman then approaches you and extends her hand:  
  
“I’m Eileen. Hunter of Hunters,” you glare as soon as she introduces her occupation. Seeing that, the woman retracts her hand. “Well, he wasn’t kidding when he said you’re one of those types.”  
  
“She probable is resentful of some perceived sleight,” Qrow piped in.  
  
“I’m sorry, ‘perceived sleight’?” you can feel your eyes going red.  
  
That’s when Qrow receives a slap on the back of the head from Eileen. The act is so sudden your anger evaporates and gives way to confusion.  
  
“Didn’t we agree I would do the talking and you would keep your trap shut? Honestly, you’re liable to get us killed faster than the Grimm or the Church,” Eileen chastises, to which Qrow mumbles some expletives under his breath. “Don’t listen to him. He has no tact at all.”  
  
“That’s what I keep telling everybody,” Ruby says. “It’s good to see you, Aunt Eileen.”  
  
“Same here, little rose. I see you’re in good health.”  
  
“Wait…” you speak, looking from one woman to the other and then to Qrow. “She’s your… does that mean she and Qrow... ?”  
  
The two referred Hunters of Hunters look at you before looking at each other. Then they speak, one over the other:  
  
“I would never-”  
  
“I would sooner marry an Ursa-”  
  
Ruby sighs and speaks up too:  
  
“She’s not my aunt by blood. I’m just used to call her that.”  
  
“Anyway…” Qrow quips up. “Are you ready to leave?” you look at him and he seems to realize you’re about to protest. “Do you really want to stay just to end up infected?” you shut your mouth at that. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but people with strong Aura tend to transform in the strongest, most terrifying Grimm.”  
  
That… doesn’t inspire any confidence in you.  
  
“Believe in me, the best you can do is abandon this city. You can tell the Guild what’s happening, but they probably will think the same thing. It’s best to let this plague die together with Yharnam.”  
  
You bite your lower lips at this. You can’t refute his arguments but… all of this just feels so wrong to you.  
  
“I’m going to lead you to the main gate,” Eileen speaks up.  
  
“You’re not coming?” you turn to Ruby and Qrow. The oldest member of that family speaks:  
  
“We have to talk with… Gascoigne’s daughters. Get them to a safe place.”  
  
You nod, feeling a tug in your heart again. It might sound selfish, but you’re quite relived that you don’t have to go and speak with these girls. The guilt would probably make you spill the beans and make things worse.  
  
Eileen gives you a brown, tattered cloak to wear. You prepare to put it on, when Ruby calls your name. You turn to see her close to you.  
  
“What is it?”  
  
She seems to shy away a bit, shuffling her feet around and looking anywhere, but you. You’re about to ask again, but the young woman acts first, standing on the tip of her feet and… kisses you on the cheek.  
  
You bring your hand to the spot and look at Ruby, who’s still looking shy and cute as she says:  
  
“For good luck… my mom used to kiss me every time she had to go away to the Hunt…”  
  
_That’s… really adorable when you think about it._ you can’t help the smile on your face. Before Ruby can speak again, you lean in and kiss her cheek in turn.  
  
You’re pretty sure you’ve heard Qrow choking. When you look up, you see him trying to set you on fire with his eyes. You can safely rule that out as his Semblance. Looking back to Ruby, her face now got completely red (you try not to squeal at how adorable she looks).  
  
“Thanks,” you say with a big grin. “It was nice spending some time with you,” you would say more, but Qrow looks ready to jump and murder your hide.  
  
With a “wish me luck”, you wear the cloak, brings your scarf up to cover your mouth, picks your things and leave.  
  
“Was that genuine, or do you get a kick out of riling him up?” Eileen asks after the door closes and you two walk towards the main street.  
  
“A bit of both,” you say.  
  
“Good. Because if you were just playing Ruby, I would have to slit your throat.”  
  
You look at Eileen. She doesn’t have her mask on so you can see the graying hair amidst the brown, the lines of expression on her face and how she’s looking at you with a completely serious look. You wonder which one of the two is scarier; Qrow and his scowl, or Eileen and her… you can’t think on a good rhyme.  
  
As you and the Hunter of Hunters leave the main street in complete silence and arrive at the street with the gate to the graveyard where you landed, you see something down this street that makes Eileen curse:  
  
“Really? Again?”  
  
You wonder how common it is to sight a pile of flaming debris and crosses with carcasses of (possibly) Grimm attached to it. You can see several other similar pyres and smoke coming out of the adjacent streets as people come and go, seeming to patrol or just admire the decorative ensemble.  
  
“Honestly, why do they feel the necessity of cluttering the streets that are reclaimed during the Hunts like this?” the older woman speaks.  
  
“Maybe to let people know it’s safe to come back?” you offer helpfully.  
  
“More like to show off,” she points to the group of people gathering around the pyres. “We can’t go down the streets with this crowd around. They’ll ask too many questions.”  
  
“Why can’t we simply ignore that and make it for the gate? I mean, I’m leaving anyway.”  
  
Eileen looks back at you and speaks in a no-nonsense tone:  
  
“Because you stick out like a sore thumb and you can bet there will be some Church Hunters nearby even if the people don’t warn them when they see you. They’ll try to detain you for questioning and if you escape they’ll warn the ones stated at the garrisons on the wall and make it impossible for us to open the gate.”  
  
You still think you could take on any of those so-called Hunters, but decide to leave it up to Eileen’s judgment. Besides, you remember how big that gate was from the outside. Even with your strength, it would probably take you some time to open it, leaving you exposed for attacks. That’s not even taking into consideration if there is a second gate on the wall.  
  
“So, what do we do?” you ask.  
  
“Let’s wait on Iosefka’s clinic. They’ll clean up the debris before sunset.”  
  
With that Eileen turns tail and you follow her into the big construction you’ve seen upon "entering" the town. The two of you go down a set of stairs and arrive at a room with several medicine cabinets and a door with a window leading to another, bigger room. This one has several beds, transfusion bags and some men and woman sleeping in.  
  
Eileen walks across the room with you following right behind, climbing up another set of stairs and opening another door. Somebody inside this room comes up to you:  
  
“Oh no, please! I already told you to wait outside if you need…”  
  
“Calm down, Sefka,” Eileen speaks. “We’re clean here.”  
  
The woman, Iosefka, regards the two of you with an exasperated look as she closes the door behind her.  
  
“We both know that is not true, considering what you have to hunt every night. I can’t possibly let you linger around the other patients with the risk of infection” Iosefka speaks, the concern that you always associated to the Guild’s healers present in her voice. She turns to look at you. “And who might you be? Did you come here to take the next batch of Blood?”  
  
“No, thanks,” you say, lowering your scarf and the hood as you gave the woman a smile. “I like to think I don’t need implements to be a badass.”  
  
Iosefka raises an eyebrow at you. Eileen simply chuckles and resume her business tone:  
  
“We need to ask a favor of you. Yang here needs to leave the city- no, she isn’t infected, don’t make that face- and the roads to the main gate are blocked. Think she could wait here till sunset?”  
  
“I can even help you if you want,” you offer when you see Iosefka’s reluctant face. “I have some experience with injuries. Have to, since I’m a huntress.”  
  
The doctor seems to ponder on that offer. Suddenly her eyes take a glint as she asks you to wait there while she runs back to the adjacent room. You look at Eileen, who shrugs.  
  
After a minute or so of waiting, Iosefka comes back, saying for you to go out there and take side door to the back of the clinic. You nod and Eileen leads you out on the street you were before, making a turn aorund the block and finding the back door with the doctor already waiting there.  
  
"I'll monitor the situation out here," Eileen says as you enter.  
  
Iosefka takes you up a flight of stairs and leads you into a small room. There’s only one bed here, several cabinets with glasses (some containing things you’re not entirely sure are medicine) and IV stands near the bed. Iosefka asks you to sit and you do so, while chatting with her a bit:  
  
“So… you the local healer?”  
  
“I’m about the only qualified doctor left. The others are Church members with field experience,” she says while looking through the cabinets, as if trying to find something. “Not that they are bad, but most of their methods tend to be a bit more… crude. Their mission is to take care of the Hunters so they survive the current Hunt. If their patients die…it’s just another casualty in the field."  
  
“Well, your Church certainly seems to look out for the people,” you wonder if you’ve put enough sarcasm in that sentence.  
  
Iosefka stays silent for a moment while moving things here and there and bringing a flame closer to her. She speaks:  
  
“While I do agree with you, I would advise against voicing out your opinion. Most people still believe the Church will guide them through this crisis,” you have some very thoughtful things to say about that statement, but you let Iosefka continue. “No matter what kind of actions they have to take…”  
  
You huff and look around. Something in one of the desks calls your attention; a photography frame showing two women and a little girl very familiar to you.  
  
“You know Ruby?” you ask.  
  
“Oh, yes. I was the one that treated her when her mother and Qrow arrived in the city after their village was destroyed,” Iosefka’s tone is a bit fond as she speaks. “I was just starting and it was the first time I saw a child that was injured and ill from improper traveling conditions. Though I can’t really blame them.”  
  
She then finally turns to you and…  
  
That’s a really big needle. You’ve saw some that size and they generally were for…  
  
“Could you please lie back?” the doctor asks you. You look from her to the needle on the syringe and back to her.  
  
"What are you going to do with that?" you can't help, but ask.  
  
“You did say you would help right? It’s hard to find clean blood nowadays and the transfusion always helps those afflicted with the plague.”  
  
You can understand what she’s asking and why she’s asking that...  
  
"But... why is it this size?" you inch away from the doctor. You never liked needles. Probably because your Semblance doesn’t really help against piercing attacks, so you end up feeling all the pain when your Aura is broken.  
  
Iosefka seems to notice your discomfort, but instead of being reassuring and caring like any good doctor, she sighs in exasperation.  
  
“You do know normal needles don’t work on people with their Aura unlocked, right?"  
  
"Yeah. And for a very good reason," you talk back. You now remember why you never talked too much with the Guild's healers; they were the reason why after each check up you wouldn't be able to sit straight for several hours.  
  
“Oh please, don’t be a baby," Iosefka rolls her eyes at that. Of course she would. It's not _her_ who's going to be impaled by some maniac. "I know you Hunters can take much worse. It’s enough that Qrow acts like that every time Ruby manages to convince him to make a check up. Now, please. Lay down.”  
  
Her tone is autoritative and you don't like how she compares you to Qrow. Pride and survival instincts battle against one another as you try to decide which of the two things is worse. Iosefka apparently got impatient and jabbed the heated needle on your arm.  
  
All you can remember before using all your willpower to hold in a cry is this:  
  
_Yharnam sucks…_

_\- / - / - / - / - / - / - / - / -_

_After the doctor (needle maniac) extracts (steals) some of your blood, you’re free to look around and try to distract yourself from the pain. There’s not much to look around in this tiny room except for that photography and…  
  
“What’s on that box?” you ask, pointing to a wooden box with a lock and some kind of sigil stamped on its sides and top. Suffice to say, it looks very official… ish.  
  
“That is the latest batch of the Blood the Church delivered earlier this morning,” Iosefka answers as she looks at the vial containing your blood and humming as she passes it through some instruments you don’t even… wait.  
  
“You mean the thing you guys drink to fight the Grimm is in that?”  
  
You get up and approach to look the box. The sigil is clearer to you now that you’re closer. It looks like circles, a coat of arms and something behind it that you swear is some kind of wheel.  
  
“Please, don’t try to break it. The Church is very strict on handling the Blood. The only ones with the keys are the Church Hunters and if they see signs that somebody tried to open it, I will lose the right to practice medicine here,” Iosefka says in a pleading tone.  
  
She sounds just like those people that were routinely extorted and threatened by rouge Huntsmen. You get up and take some steps away to tranquilize the good doctor. Still, something stinks here:  
  
“So, they don’t let you handle it even though you’re the local healer?”  
  
“The Blood is sacred to the Church and, by extension, the Yharnamites. Meddling with it is considered heresy and punished by several means. Believe in me; the first time I asked questions about it, they ‘politely’ told me to stop. When I tried to examine it, they threatened to hand me over the Executioners for punishment.”  
  
There are so many flags this conversation is raising on your head…  
  
You would press Iosefka for more information, but the poor woman is already sweating and looking around as if expecting said Executioners to pop out of her cabinets of medicine. It seems the threats stuck with her.  
  
You huff a bit and Iosefka goes back to her work as you look around again. You look at one of the cabinets with the labeled bottles on it and find some very interesting ones. These are labeled “Progression” and show some dates and numbers that you guess is some sort of percentage. You were never a math fan, only learning the applications of it on economy so you didn’t get scammed in a job by some crook.  
  
The bottles contain what you guess is the blood of subjects. There’s some black thing sitting on the bottom of each bottle, stirring and waving as if it were still alive inside the fluid. The higher the numbers on the label is, the more of that black substance is in the bottle.  
  
Actually, this thing is kind of familiar. It looks just like the black particles that are released when there are several Grimm packed in a single space. Nobody knows what those are or why they manifest, but some theorize it is negative energy given form.  
  
_Maybe this is the thing that turns people into Grimm? But how does it get in their blood?_ you’ve been exposed to these particles (?) before, even while injured, and you can safely say you don’t feel any Grimm-er. _Heh. Grimm-er… I have to use that sometime._  
  
“It’s really something, isn’t it?” you hear Iosefka speaking as she walks and stands beside you. “Those particles have been in these bottles for quite a while and they are still active. Makes me wonder if they are really what the Grimm release when in large numbers.  
  
“Normally, those particles disperse too fast to be properly observed. Some believe a single Grimm releases it in too little quantities to be seen. Still, I didn’t hear of any cases of them interacting with anything, much less living beings and these dispersed as soon as I tried to separate them from the patient’s blood.”  
  
You stare at the things. You might not have a deep grasp of biology, but you understood a few things. And, right now, this whole talk raised one doubt in your mind:  
  
“Is there something in Yharnam that could have caused this to enter in the people?”  
  
“Not really. The only substance that is unique to our city is...” she looks towards the box. You accompany her eyes and yours widen. Before you can say anything, Iosefka speaks. “But it wouldn't be possible.”  
  
“How can you be so sure it’s not it?” you ask.  
  
“Because nobody in their right mind would give out something that would have this kind of effect. The Dusk Church might be whatever it is, but they are not monsters.”  
  
You open your mouth... just to close it soon afterwards.  
  
You can’t exactly blame Iosefka for thinking like that, because... well... she’s right. It takes a special kind of insane to deal with Grimm like they’re tools. The kind of insane you only saw on the worst of the worst rogue Huntsman and... some other people.  
  
Still, you do note some minute signs on the good doctor; biting her lower lip, looking back at the bottles with the Blood... you can’t help, but wonder aloud:  
  
“Does the Church plan to distribute the Blood to other places?”  
  
“I don’t think so. Yharnam has a very isolationist stance on the matters of the outside world...”  
  
_But that doesn’t mean they can’t brag about this to others and then people will get curious to see this Blood._ went the unspoken addition that you are sure a woman as intelligent as Iosefka could infer. “Does Birdworth study the Blood by any chance?”  
  
“You mean Byrgenwerth?” Iosefka asks, tilting her head. You simply nod, not even bothered by everybody else being able to pronounce the name. “I would say so. After all, it was them who started the practice of Blood Ministration and one of the late Master Willem’s apprentices is the one that introduced it to the Church.”  
  
And just like that, it all goes back to that place.  
  
_You know what? Fuck Qrow and his fatalist attitude._  
  
You would have spoken more, but Eileen suddenly materializes (really, no kidding! You didn’t even hear her approaching) behind you two, scaring poor Iosefka and making her jump.  
  
No. You didn’t get spooked just like the doctor. No sir.  
  
“I hate to interrupt, but we have Church Hunters coming here from the gates and they don’t look like they want to ask for a check up. Yang, you should leave before they find you,” the crow-themed woman says.  
  
You nod and follow Iosefka to a back entrance of the clinic that opens to some rooftops of the houses on Central Yharnam. The woman instructs you to follow the path down where you should encounter a ladder leading to an abandoned tunnel that would take you out of the city, but warns you that there are large Grimm down there according to reports.  
  
“If you hide and pass unnoticed by them, I’m sure you’ll be able to...”  
  
“Which way is Byr-you-know-the-place,” you interrupt her.  
  
“Um...” Iosefka lets out, seeming confused, until you both hear a hard knock coming from inside the clinic. In her panic, she answers. “It’s to the left of the plaza at the feet of the stairs of the Grand Cathedral, passing the bridge Great Bridge of Central Yharnam and deep into the Cathedral Ward. Why?”  
  
“Thanks,” you tell her... and add with a smile. “And sorry.”  
  
“What for... wait?!”  
  
You dash off before she can realize what she just told you. Jumping to the higher rooftops and running in the direction of the big bridge you could see in the distance.  
  
As you jump from rooftop to rooftop, climb the wall and avoid any and all people on the streets, you think back on what you just did. Iosefka will probably be fine if she plays her cards right. Eileen will probably not like the fact that you ditched her when they were trying to get you out of the city, but she would probably understand why you did it.  
  
… Maybe?  
  
You grin as you think on Qrow’s expression as soon as he hears of this.  
  
Anyway you absolutely _have_ to get to Byrd- you know what? Just call it the B-Academy. As scared as you are of this plague affecting you, what would happen if your suspicions are confirmed and this has something to do with that Blood that everybody on Yharnam seems to have used at least once? What if they start distributing this to other places? Or if the Guild or somebody else stumble upon this after the entire Yharnam is dead and only the Grimm are left?  
  
No. You are doing what you have to do.  
  
Besides, this is your original mission; look for the B-Academy and find out what they are researching. And if they are researching something that links to this “plague”, then some people will suddenly find themselves unable to reproduce.  
  
As you jump off the rooftops over Ruby’s house, you finally land on the bridge that gives way to a higher section of the city that must be the Cathedral Ward. There are some bloodstains and more abandoned baby cradles and horse carriages on the place. Also, you can see some creepy statues of people covered in sheets and some gravestones on the pavement.  
  
You wonder how Ruby is doing and if she already gave the news to Gascoigne’s daughters...  
  
You tilt your head to the side just time to hear the bullet whizzing past your ear. Looking back, you see some black-garbed figures closing in to your position. Cursing, you take off to the other end of the bridge, avoiding their shots.  
  
You pass an arc and see a barred tunnel and a side door ahead. However, when you try to open the door it doesn’t budge.  
  
_Well, just what I needed!_ you internally scowl as you hear another shot whizzing near your head, accompanied by a voice:  
  
“Stay still! Don’t make another move or the next shot is gonna blow your brains out!”  
  
You curse under you breath and put your hands up in the air. Judging from the distance and the volume of the voice, that guy is close enough that he probably won’t miss again.  
  
“Now turn this way! Slowly,” the Church Hunter says again as you turn and see three average looking guys wearing those black garbs with hoods and a hat on top.  
  
The Church’s dress designers really need a better sense of fashion. The only thing missing would be some tacky, Grimm masks.  
  
...  
  
Actually, scratch that. You know people who can make those fashionable.  
  
“Looks like we scored big, pals. She looks just like the descriptions,” one of the Hunters says.  
  
“Go warn the others. Tell them we got the foreigner slut they were looking for,” the one with the gun says and you actually have to control yourself not to go up to him and punch his face.  
  
Really, what is wrong with what you wear? Sure, it shows your midriff and cleavage, but so what?! You’ve seen huntresses that wear even less and they are never accused of promiscuity.  
  
“Think we could have some fun with her first?” another of the Hunters says and your pretty sure your eyes are turning red, if the fact the guy with the weapon grips it tighter is any indication.  
  
“I don’t see why not. Just shoot her in the le-” unfortunately, that guy never manages to finish his sentence for he is suddenly afflicted with a very bad case of squished-to-death via giant Grimm landing on him and his friend.  
  
The one with the gun is startled, but manages to jump back and look at the thing that killed his pals. You can’t see it clearly from your position, but you can hear its ear-splitting roar as the Church Hunter fires at the Grimm. Only to be grabbed on the torso by one, bulky, hairy left arm.  
  
The thing then smashes his legs on the pavement, making even you wince. At least, his aura might have- never mind. He is smashed again and again and you’re pretty sure all bones on his lower body are pulverized. The Grimm then throws him away and you wonder if he’ll be able to survive the fall.  
  
The monster turns to look at you.  
  
The face, body and the bone-white antlers poking out of the beast’s head identify it as a Faust. However, there are spots of faded white fur on its body. Its left arm is too bulky and hairy, instead of dark and bony with white spikes poking out of it, and half of its face is covered by a half-bone mask with dark fur surrounding it with the other has red, exposed skin and one, wide, completely red eye.  
  
Another turned one...  
  
You swallow at nothing. The beast _screeches_ in your face and raises that buffed arm to punch you. While you’re pretty sure your Semblance can take it, you’re not big on being turned into a punching bag, so you time it and duck, letting the fist make a hole in the grates behind you as you roll closer to the Grimm.  
  
Seeing it missed its attack, it tries to stomp on you, but you soon spring to your feet and dive between its legs, sliding away and turning back as the beast faces you.  
  
You could simply ignore it and leave through the hole it just made on that tunnel. You do consider it, as you don’t want to have another Gascoigne on your hands... until you remember Ruby’s words.  
  
You look at the Faust’s eyes, seeing only fury and a beastly madness on those red orbs... you can only see a Grimm’s eyes.  
  
_Imagine how they feel... how these people feel upon turning into Grimm..._  
  
“You must be hurting... right?” your only answer is a screech as the thing dig its claws on the pavement. “I wonder if there is anything left of who you once were...”  
  
The Faust grabs a nearby carriage and throws it at you. For one moment, it must have looked like you were crushed, the large transport skidding on the pavement... until you raise it above your head and throw it back at the monster, who simply destroys it with a swing of that powerful, left arm.  
  
“Welp...” you equip your bracelets and let the blades slide out with a flick of your wrist. “Just so you know: I don’t like doing this ‘cause fighting is what gets me on. But...” you assume a fighting stance with your legs spread and fists ready. “I can’t ignore somebody who is clearly suffering right in front of me. I’m no Ruby, but I’ll do my best to be quick.”  
  
The Faust roars as it charges to meet your challenge.  
  
It doesn't matter what you think, or how you feel. The fact is: you will end up fighting these things, these _turned_ people. So... if you can help them, by ending their torment...  
  
You hope you are doing the right choice...  
  
“Let’s dance!” _


	5. Hunters and Prey - Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even if they were once human, they are now Grimm: a threat to all of mankind, even their loved ones.
> 
> At least that is what Yang tells herself...

\- / - **Faust (The Cleric Beast)** \- / -

 

[Faust](https://youtu.be/TiNGYnjHAw4) are considered a subspecies of the Beowolf Grimm, due to their ability to command the packs. Nobody knows if they are some sort of evolution or a transformation an Alpha Beowolf can achieve at some point, because they are pretty rare; never seen in groups bigger than three. The youngest Faust are taller than an Alpha Beowolf, while the elders are as big as or even bigger than a Goliath.  
  
The one you are clashing with could be considered an oddity: it's definitely young, yet it's as big as a small house. Its movements are fast, though telegraphed. Very typical, novice Hunter's prey in your opinion.  
  
That is, if it weren’t for the fact part of its body had colors other than the pitch black of Grimm. Oh, and it bled each time your blades managed to cut its body… you will probably need a shower latter...  
  
Still, the Faust tries to grab, punch and sometimes clobber you with one of the statues or coffins spread around the bridge. You would send a complaint to the cleaning department regarding them not doing their job, but you were rather occupied at the moment. Somersaulting over another wide sweep of the Grimm’s buff, left arm, you land just to jump and hit it with a jab on its neck. The blade cuts in, but the monster shakes you off. You’re thrown aside and just have enough time to see the giant, bulky fist connecting to your face.  
  
You can feel your Semblance absorbing a veritable amount of power from that. Also, you crash on the ground and your head is now spinning.  
  
_Ok… getting hit by this thing… not fun._ you decide as you get up and see the Faust in the air, ready to crush you like it did to those Church Hunters.  
  
You roll underneath its legs as it stomps down, spring up and turn, punching the half-Grimm’s spine’s base and flicking your arm to the side, leaving a nasty cut that makes the thing turn with its bulky arm outstretched and catch you by surprise.  
  
You get up right in time for the half-Grimm to join its hands and slam them on the ground, creating some kind of shockwave effect that you jump aside to avoid. The monster jumps forward, right arm stretched to grab you, only for you to duck as it sails above your head and punch up on the creature’s wrist with your blade. It recoils, its hand twitching as it holds it.  
  
You grin as you feel your blood pumping. You really didn’t want to enjoy this, considering this thing used to be a person, but it’s so easy to forget that when you look into its eyes; there is no spark of intelligent or any kind of glint a person would normally hold. No emotion besides hatred and malice can be seen on it. For all effects and purposes, the creature before you is a Grimm, through and through.  
  
_"It must be like a waking nightmare…"_  
  
Well, if beating this thing into a bloody pulp will help whoever it was, then there is no need to hold back.  
  
You notice the Faust hugging itself as some kind of dark energy surrounds it and is absorbed by its body. You can feel what little is left of its Aura venting off a little more as some of the patches of colored fur become a pitch black.  
  
Also, it healed the hand you broke and the cuts you’ve made.  
  
“Seriously?!” as if to answer your question, it jumps on you and punches your gut with its newly healed hand. You are sent flying back, but manage to right yourself and land in a crouch. “Ok, no more Miss Nice Yang!” if this thing can heal itself, then it’s a free pass for you to punch harder.  
  
You close your fists, slide the blades back into their compartments and punch your knuckles together, your eyes going instantly red as you activate the secondary characteristic of your Semblance. Your hair seems to ignite and you jump in the air as the Faust slowly approaches you. As you come down you punch the ground and columns of fire rise in a line in front of you, going for the monster.  
  
The half-Grimm looks confused at seeing the fire, which gives the line enough time to reach it and hit its face and body, making it roar as its fur burns. It’s not enough to give it any serious damage, but it stays staggered long enough for you to reach and start hitting it with your blades again.  
  
Your fists and blades are covered in fire as each strike burns the puncture wounds you leave behind. In this state, you’re actively spending the accumulated energy of your Semblance, but, as you’ve learned before, many Grimm are flammable and this one happens to be one of these cases as cinders are left in the place where you hit it.  
  
It tries to retaliate by kicking you and then punching it with it buffed arm, but you jump _on_ its arm, running along it and punching the Grimm’s face before it can shake you off. The blow singes its facial fur and leaves a small crack on its bone mask.  
  
With another screech, the Faust grabs one of the spikes protruding from its right arm and rips it off. You raise an eyebrow, not remembering having met any Grimm that… you have to jump and dodge back as it tries to skewer you with the long spike.  
  
_Ok, this thing seems to be getting more intelligent the longer it fights._ when the spike-turned-pike (heh) comes close to you again, you dodge at the last possible second and grabs it, being pulled back with it.  
  
You aim and punch the fingers of the beast, your blade sinking in deeper thanks to the fire burning its way through flesh. The Grimm roars again and lets go of the spike you’re still holding. You quickly adjust your grip on it and turn its point to the Grimm, which tries to punch you with its buffed arm in retaliation.  
  
Big mistake…  
  
One of the first things you’ve discovered when training with your Semblance’s secondary characteristic was that it’s capable of powering objects and weapons that you’re holding. This spends your accumulated energy faster than merely punching or using summoned fire and the size of the object also counts on the equation. That is why you always make sure to have at least some energy stored on you, because if you spend it all while in this state, your Semblance will enter in its “dormant state”.  
  
Granted, you’ve trained to reduce the cool down time to the smallest possible, but it still leaves a window in which you are vulnerable.  
  
The fist comes down as you power the spike you’re holding and thrusts it, resulting in a bloody splatter as the burning point _tears through_ the arm of the monster, you let it go and jump on the head of the creature. That stunt cost you half of your accumulated energy, but what’s left is enough for what you are planning.  
  
You land on the thing’s shoulder as it seems to be nursing its ruined arm, seeming to be in shock for the first time in the fight. You quickly turn and grab one of its antlers near the base of the skull and tear it away, jumping off as the Faust _screeches_ in anger at your bold move. Your ears are ringing, since you were closer than you would like when that thing let out that scream, and you grimace as you put a finger on ear to try and get the ringing to stop. While you are seemingly distracted, the Faust goes into a blind rage and tries to bite your head off.  
  
You grin as you turn and punch the monster on its snout, making it lose its balance and fall to the side. You clutch the antler on your other hand, empowers it with your semblance’s flames and _thrust it_ into the Grimm’s left eye and skull.  
  
Blood flies as you can feel your makeshift spear destroy the ocular orb and impale the monster’s brain, burning everything it touches, leaving behind a nasty smell. Also part of antler broke against the Faust’s head, making cuts on the eye socket. The creature slumps like a marionette with its strings cut out and stops moving completely.  
  
You step back and wait. Five seconds later, you can officially give this Grimm (to quote Instructor Torchwick) the status of “dead as fuck”.  
  
“Well, that was certainly an... _eye-opening_ experience,” you pun.  
  
Everything seems to suddenly go silent, even the sounds of the wind and fire.  
  
You swear you can hear a “boo! You suck!” being whispered in the distance.  
  
Grinning, you turn from the Grimm and make your way to the hole it opened in the grates of that tunnel under the Cathedral Ward. However, you stop for a moment and turn to see the Faust slowly starting to disappear, leaving behind puddles of blood on the bridge.  
  
“I hope you can be free now...” you speak to the creature that was once a human or Faunus, your tone somber...

\- / - / - / - / - / - / - / -

Turns out the tunnel you’ve entered is part of the sewers of the Cathedral Ward. Meaning: it smells…  
  
And there are some Grimm carrying bricks that tried to ambush you, but those guys were so weak compared to the Faust you’ve just fought that after their first hit you just have to break their jaws and apply a blade-punch to the neck before you get your other hand inside their neck, rip their heads off and use it as a bludgeon.  
  
Of course, Grimm heads don’t make good bludgeons, but there is something inherently amusing about ripping a Grimm’s skull out of its head and beating it to death with it. The first time you actually did it, the veteran hunter that was shadowing you reported this to your instructors and proceed to drink himself into a stupor. You are pretty sure some of the Guild also got worried when you made this into a viable means of fighting the Grimm and thought you were succumbing to the stress of the Life of the Hunt, but you never showed any of its signs like increased violence and blood lust, specially against non-Grimm.  
  
Anyway, there are grates down here that give you a view of the houses on the streets. Also, you found signs for the workers to orient themselves and you follow the ones that read “Cathedral Plaza”. After taking a few curves, you finally find a ladder and climb it, finding a manhole with a lock, but a quick application of your Aura-powered grip reduces it to a crumpled mass metal and leave the sewers.  
  
“Ok… and now I’m in- oh…”

  
**[CaTHeDraL WArd]**

  
You can see a big stairway in the distance that goes up all the way to a large building in what you guess is the highest point in the city. Probably the Grand Cathedral...  
  
However, what calls your attention is the little plaza bellow it with another ominous monument on its center. Also, it has gravestones all over the place, making it look more like a graveyard. While the sight really unsettles you, you hear a sound of metal on stone coming from the plaza/graveyard. Arming your bracelets again, you slowly approach it. It wouldn’t do to get blindsided by a potential enemy while you’re looking for the path to B-Academy.  
  
You coast the tall fence of the plaza/graveyard to your right, following the sound. As you approach the source you see a red cape with a hood of the same color leaning over- oh, it’s Ruby! You smile at seeing a friendly figure as you stroll to her. Getting close, you speak:  
  
“Hey Rub-” your reflexes take over.  
  
When you realize what is actually happening, Ruby’s scythe blade (now wielded by the girl without it’s shaft, like some sort of curved blade) is close to your head, blocked by the blade compartment of the bracelet on your right hand. Your left hand is poised to hit Ruby’s face, the blade of your bracelet inches from the space between her eyes while her gun is right over your heart.  
  
If the two of you hadn’t stopped when you did, you would probably be just two more corpses to be buried in this graveyard.  
  
“Oh… hi Yang,” Ruby says, a bit too cheerful for somebody who’s in the middle of a deadlock.  
  
“Hey,” you reply back, smiling despite your predicament.  
  
It might look weird to an outsider to see two women holding conversation while in this position, but this isn’t the first time you’ve been in this situation. Your instructors loved to point out how you should always be on your guard at all times, even when chatting with a friend. You never knew when an intelligent Grimm would choose to jump you, or when the other hunter might suddenly snap under the pressure of the Life of the Hunt.  
  
That sounded cruel when you first heard it, but it’s reality; you got tired of going into Hunts where one of the Hunters would suddenly jump and brandish his weapon at any sign of movement nearby due to the stress of an eminent encounter with a high-level Grimm.  
  
You and Ruby move at the same time, disengaging your weapons and making it look like you hadn’t tried to kill each other just a moment ago.  
  
“Wait... Yang?! What are you doing here? You should be out of town!” Ruby spoke, suddenly realizing you are _here._  
  
“Well… funny story,” you give her a nervous giggle. “You see, some Church Hunters came to Iosefka’s clinic looking for me and I kinda bailed.”  
  
“Into the city?”  
  
You give her a smile of “what can you do?” and the woman in red just sighs.  
  
“Uncle Qrow is gonna kill you when he finds out,” Ruby speaks.  
  
“Well, he doesn’t need to know. Besides, I still have business to do here,” you then look at the gravestone Ruby had been leaning over, noticing the little hammer and metal nail. “Who was that?” you ask, all your previous mirth gone.  
  
Ruby seems confused for a moment, before she turns to look at where your gaze is directed at and lets out an “oh” as she speaks:  
  
“Dunno. Found him in the process of turning. Still had enough sanity to talk and everything. I asked him if he would let the transformation happen or if he wanted it to end while he was still human.”  
  
“And he chose… ?” you ask.  
  
“I think you can guess. Grimm, even turned ones, don’t leave corpses to be buried.”  
  
You lean to the side. You can read the epitaph on the gravestone:  
  
_May this soul find comfort in the embrac-_  
  
The “e” is missing. You probably interrupted Ruby while she was finalizing the details.  
  
“So… that ‘gravemaker’ thing wasn’t simply a jest, I take.”  
  
You never met gravediggers before, mainly because the only places you’ve been to that had graveyards were generally maintained by the locals, or the graveyard was made by the passing Huntsmen team that found the settlement razed by Grimm. However, you did hear stories about them as old people with creepy appearance, carrying a shovel around and muttering one thing or another.  
  
Ruby certainly didn’t look creepy and certainly wasn’t old.  
  
_Cutest gravedigger ever._  
  
“Yeah. Although I’m the only one that gets the title. I guess they intended for it to be an insult or something,” Ruby speaks as she crouches down to the gravestone again and resumes her crafting.  
  
“How so?”  
  
“Because that’s what the widows called me when they learned I was the one responsible for their new status,” you wince, but notice Ruby talks about it as she would the weather. “Personally, I prefer ‘Crimson Sweeper’. Sounds more badass,” and like that she switches back to cheerful.  
  
“You shouldn’t be ok with this kind of thing. I mean, you’re helping these people and that’s how they treat you?”  
  
“It is how it’s always been in Yharnam. You get used to this kind of treatment,” she speaks above the sounds nail-on-stone. She probably noticed you were about to give her a rebuttal, because she amended. “That’s the same thing for Hunters of Hunters, right?”  
  
That… actually stung a bit. So much that you actually wince.  
  
You’re about to retort, when Ruby gets up and turns to you. Gone is the cheerful, cute expression on the woman’s face, instead what you have before you is the hardened, serious look that you’ve seen so much on the face of your mo- Ruby shouldn’t look like this.  
  
“It’s how it works, isn’t it? Huntsmen are supposed to be hailed as the heroes who give people hope in the war against the Grimm. They are showered with praise and lovers. Hunters of Hunters are the gritty and dark part of the Guild that everybody is supposed to be afraid off, because they are the ones that deliver sentences over the guilty, like executors would.”  
  
That was a pretty succinct description of the Guild’s PR efforts. Seems Qrow really did teach Ruby about it. Or maybe it was her mother and Eileen?  
  
“It’s the same thing here; the Dusk Church is hailed as the ones that maintain order in this city. With Byrgenwerth’s backing, they will help Yharnam and its citizens to advance and thrive through these difficult times,” you recognize the lines as something that is probably propaganda. Ruby intones them with such a dry and emotionless tone that broke you no doubt as to what she thinks of it.  
  
“It’s completely different…”  
  
“Yang, please don’t insult my intelligence,” Ruby interrupts you, making you instantly shut your mouth. “I wonder what you would have thought if I had mentioned I was trained as a Hunter of Hunters when we met,” she looks quite dejected as she speaks that.  
  
You’re not an idiot; you know that Ruby is pretty smitten by you. You can’t exactly point out if that was what made her want to meet you or if it was something along the way, but it’s pretty clear that she admires you. You must be the first Huntress Ruby had contact with that wasn’t a family member.  
  
You admit to yourself: were this any other situation, you wouldn’t have thought twice about trying to pull some moves on the woman. The only thing holding you back was the fact that you were technically on duty.  
  
The Guild was always very through on instilling it’s “reap the rewards _after_ the job is done” philosophy on all Hunters.  
  
“Yang…” Ruby calls your attention, making you focus on the current situation. “Did something happen with you and a Hunter of Hunters?” she still looks serious, but there is a slight warmth on her tone.  
  
You really don’t want to talk about it. In fact you don’t have to. Cute or not, this is too personal for you to share with someone you barely know like Ruby.  
  
However, you knew any mission, no matter the kind, was infinitely easier when you had the support of the locals. Yharnam was one of those scenarios where not only the locals were not cooperative, but intelligence was also scarce. Having someone with Hunter training that knew the region like Ruby did could be imperative to the mission’s success.  
  
Also, you like meeting new people and making friends with them. If you stonewalled everybody that asked about your story, your life would be pretty lonely.  
  
That's not how you would like to be remembered by others...  
  
Still, even if you had to answer that for the sake of staying on Ruby’s good side that didn’t mean you had to pour your heart out to her.  
  
Deciding on a course of action, you speak:  
  
“My father…” you have to take a pause to collect your thoughts. “Was condemned in a trial for something he didn’t do. The one to execute the sentence was a Hunter of Hunters. They didn’t even take into account his previous record or found anything suspicious. Thanks to that he lost one of his hands and is considered ‘retired’ for all effects and purposes.”  
  
Ruby looks shocked at those news as you turn to look anywhere, but her face. It never got any easier to talk about this. You soon locate a gate on the left side of the plaza. Must be the entrance to the path to B-Academy.  
  
“What?!” you hear Ruby exclaiming. “Why would they do that?”  
  
“Hunters are showered in praise and lovers, remember?” you talk back, still not looking at Ruby. “So, obviously, there are those that are exceptional and get an even bigger share of the fame. Naturally, this incites envy on others, which leads to internal conflict among both divisions,” you now turn to Ruby, looking just as serious as the younger woman did before. “Didn’t your uncle tell you about that particular side of our job?”  
  
Ruby seems like she wants to say something, but her voice doesn’t come out. The mood gets unbearable for you and you decide it’s time to leave.  
  
“Is Byr… that place, through that way?” you point to the entrance you saw.  
  
“Yes,” Ruby speaks, apparently deciding to change the subject too. “There’s a path for you to follow through the forest. It’s surprisingly devoid of any Grimm... but there is the porters of Byrgenwerth to worry about.”  
  
“I’ll find a way. Even if I have to bash some skulls,” you want to say something reassuring to her, but your voice is as level as it can be. _Like all of our family reunions go.._. you reflect. Seeing there isn’t anything more to speak and Ruby seems to be in deep thought, you turn to leave-  
  
“Wait!” just for the crimson-wearing woman to call you back. You turn to ask… and get hugged by Ruby. You… definitely didn’t expect that. “I’m sorry… I had no idea.”  
  
This… isn’t something you’re used to. When your father was convicted and later they found it had all been a setup, you did receive some consolations, but most of them were empty, save for very few true friends. It seems Taiyang had been just an infamous as you’ve turned out to be... maybe even more.  
  
… And you’re pretty sure you’ve spaced out just now.  
  
Where were you again?  
  
Oh right! Ruby’s hugging you.  
  
…  
  
It feels really nice.  
  
You hug her back, idly noticing her head is right over your boobs. You could crack a joke about it and maybe flirt, but even you know better than that.  
  
“It’s ok. And for the record; I’m not really mad at you,” you speak, showing your sunny smile. Ruby smiles back and let go of you. “Anyway… after I’m done with my business in B-Academy, how about you and I go somewhere nice? My treat,”  
  
“Sure! I would love t… wait. I-Is that… a d-date?!” Ruby speaks, at first sounding relieved you’re mood is back up until she notices what you’ve just proposed, reverting to a blushing and shy girl at the last part.  
  
“Only if you want to~” you give her a wink, turns and waves her a “bye”, leaving a stuttering and cute Ruby behind to mull over your invitation and the fact she just accepted it without even hesitating. _Yep, still got it._


	6. Interlude - Ruby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A look into Yharnam's very own Crimson Sweeper's mind.

Ruby Rose had led a good life.  
  
Sure, her mother has been missing long ago, presumed dead, her uncle is sick and overprotective as hell, the Yharnamites treat her with all the care and kindness they would give a Grimm and her best friend has not showed any sings of being alive for about a week now.   
  
At least she has good heal- scratch that, she was probably infected. Everybody on Yharnam is to a degree.  
  
Oh, and her uncle doesn’t like Yang.   
  
“Too showy,” he says. “Not the kind that would take most things serious, even if given a hint.”  
  
“Maybe she just likes to look at the bright side of things?” Ruby would have said to him, but her uncle would just accuse her of have been “too fixated” on Yang’s “assets” to see clearly.  
  
_Like he's one to talk… if Gascoigne hadn’t given him a reality check, Uncle Qrow would still be trying to “woo” Viola. Actually, he still did still try. Took mom to beat some sense into him, so he wouldn’t end up in a grave.  
_  
Her mother always said Qrow had bad taste in women; even when he actually found somebody worthy of having as serious relationship with that person was already taken or married. Ruby smiles at the memory. She really misses her mom sometimes.  
  
These memories make Ruby think of the times that Qrow acted as if he was her dad (as in: overprotective and wary of anybody trying to corrupt his little girl), which is kinda hilarious in a way because Ruby is pretty sure none of the other kids’ fathers offered them a drink at age 12. To be fair Qrow was piss drunk at the time.  
  
He probably still has the boot-shaped mark on his ass from the “disciplining” he got from Summer.   
  
Ruby once wondered why her mom insisted she call Qrow her “uncle” when they weren’t even related. At some point, she even thought that he was actually her biological father. While her mom blushed beet red when she asked her those questions, Qrow simply replied in that tactless manner of his:  
  
“Please, she’s not even my type. Too short and too small.”  
  
Qrow would avoid Summer like the plague for the entire next week under the threat of, to quote her dear, kind, caring mom, “making _him_ shorter and smaller”.   
  
Eventually, the subject faded in the background as her mom simply talked one last thing about her father:   
  
“It happens sometimes with one living the Life of the Hunt. When you are older I’ll tell you, but know that just because you don’t have a father doesn’t mean you are not loved by us.”  
  
The scythe-wielding girl eventually heard about single-mothers when she had a talk Doctor Iosefka and decided not to ask her mom again, since this could be a sensitive subject for anybody.  
  
Familial situations aside, Qrow could be quite overbearing with his protectiveness, considering Ruby is already on her mid-twenties. She can take care of herself, thank you very much. She wonders if he thinks she has to be protected and guided in this situation because she only had one crush, which she never acted on.   
  
At least she made friends in the end...   
  
A gurgle calls her attention and she turns to see a man on the floor, blood pooling around him and dripping from his mouth. A quick check to his Aura and his bloodshot eyes tells her he is about to turn. Ruby sighs as she pulls her hood up and approaches him.  
  
As she gets closer, the infected looks up to her and his eyes widen for a moment, before seeing her scythe and assuming a resigned look.  
  
“You’re going to turn...” she says in an imperious tone. She’s learned that in these cases it was better to stick to simple facts and not lose your time with condolences or other such formalities as that tended to mostly agitate them. “You have two options: wait for it to happen and become a mindless Grimm... or die now as a human... as yourself.”  
  
The man lowers his eyes. She can see his fear and apprehension battling with his understanding of the inevitable. It’s always like this...   
  
“I offer to take away your pain now. Will you accept it?”   
  
Those were the words that Aunt Eileen taught her. When Ruby asked her why, Eileen only answered they are a tradition of sorts for when a Hunter of Hunters meets somebody that is dyeing on the field, with no way to receive help on time. They are meant to comfort the would-be dead, but Ruby had her doubts about that sort of thing.  
  
Now, she mostly uses them out of habit.   
  
The man nods and tries his best to get up, only being reward with more coughing blood. Ruby helps him to get on his knees, to which he briefly nods before lowering his head. Ruby aligns her scythe with the man’s neck.   
  
“May you find comfort in this gentle embrace,” another set of words Eileen taught her. For some reason, Ruby felt those actually meet their intent to comfort the victim, if only because they sound more like an epitaph and a wish for them to meet peace in the afterlife.  
  
A quick, practiced swipe and the head separates from the body. In the beginning, it took her about three blows before she actually got it right. According to Eileen and Uncle Qrow, the least a Hunter of Hunters can do to those that accept their “mercy” is to give them a quick, clean death.  
  
While she was burying the poor man, Ruby met Yang again and just had to go and corner the blond about the hostility she had shown towards Uncle Qrow when she heard he was a Hunter of Hunters. In return, the crimson wearing woman received a little lesson regarding a facade of the Guild that her uncle never deigned to tell her.  
  
_Just great…_ she thought when she recognized Yang might have an actual reason to dislike the Hunters of Hunters. _What do I do now? I can’t let she just leave like this; angry with me for bringing that up.  
_  
Ruby didn’t mind that the people of Yharnam didn’t like her, or that the widows called her things both to her face and behind her back. Yang, however, was the first certified Huntress she had met (her family didn’t count since they were… well, family) that looked genuinely cool, had an awesome-looking weapon... in short, everything Ruby wanted to be as a Huntress. Plus, she was awesome, beautiful, kind and had big-  
  
_Focus, Ruby!  
_  
Ruby shook her head and looked up with determination as Yang was about to leave.  
  
“Wait!” as Yang turned to her, Ruby ran to the taller woman and hugged her. “I’m sorry… I had no idea.”  
  
Ruby’s mom always said that a hug was the best way to show that you cared. “When in doubt, hug them! It always works,” Summer would say and then demonstrate it by hugging the always grumpy Qrow, who would then sigh and pat the shorter woman on her head (her mom hated that, but let him do it anyway) and show a diminutive smile on his face.  
  
When Yang eventually hugged her back after a moment of inaction, Ruby mentally thanked her mom once again for the wise advice.  
  
Eventually they had to step out of the hug, which left Ruby sad, as Yang felt pretty soft. At least the blond still wanted to hang out an- did Yang just invited her to a date?! And Ruby just said “yes”?!  
  
_OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD...!!!_ as Ruby stays there, Yang leaves with a wave and a smile. Not that the younger woman’s mind is capable of paying attention to that as it can only spiral further into anxiety upon realizing what she has just agreed to. _WHAT DO I DO?! What do I wear?! Where do I take her?! Is she being serious? Is this one of those “one night stands” that Uncle Qrow talked about? OH MY GOD! IS SHE TAKING ME TO BED TO DO THIS AND THA- No! Control yourself Ruby!  
_  
The aspiring Hunter of Hunters then turns to the plaza’s exit as she tries to bring order to her chaotic thoughts and almost runs right into somebody. Ruby gets startled, for she was sure there wasn’t somebody there before.  
  
“I’m sorry!” Ruby quickly says... and gulps at seeing a woman with mismatching eyes and wearing the black garb of the Church Hunters, sans hat.   
  
Also her hair seems to be divided into brunette and pink and she has a smirk on her face.  
  
This certainly isn’t your everyday Church Hunter, but Ruby doesn't want to take that risk.  
  
The woman just keeps smirking at her and looks beyond Ruby to the archway that leads to the stairs, which would take one to the road to Byrgenwerth. The woman looks back at Ruby and just... keeps staring at her with that smirk on her face. Is she going to say anything?  
  
“What?” Ruby finally decides to ask.  
  
The Church Hunter’s smirk becomes a grin. A decidedly disturbing grin and- there is a sound of glass shattering and suddenly it’s like the space in front of Ruby is lying in glass-like shards at her feet as a new one is revealed, where that Church Hunter was never present.  
  
_Was that... a Semblance?!_ Ruby wonders as she calms down. _What was that abou-_ that is when Ruby remembers _who i_ s currently walking down the path to Byrgenwerth.  
  
She’s already moving in the direction of the archway, passing through it... just to run into some freshly turned half-Grimm with pieces of flesh still clinging to their forms. Some carry things like sickles and hand axes.  
  
Ruby grits her teeth in frustration.   
  
“Really? We have to do this now?!” she asks nobody in particular. Although, the half-Grimm might have understood her as they charge. “Whatever.”  
  
The Crimson Sweeper is just going to dispatch them and reach Yang before that Church Hunter can do so...


	7. Hunters and Prey - Part 2

It was just like Ruby said: the forest path is strangely clear of any Grimm presence.

 _This is not foreboding at all._ you think. _What’s up with this? There isn’t a place on Remnant that Grimm avoid, unless it poses a high risk to their survival. And even so, newly-born Grimm tend to ignore that sometimes, so what gives?_

Yharnam and the things you’ve found in it already raised several flags on your head, but a Grimm-devoid forest raises a different kind of flag altogether. Is this somehow linked to whatever they are researching on B-Academy?

You arrive in an open area where the road gives way to earthen soil. There are hills and tall tress in the borders and, in the center of the area, a statue of a winged figure holding a long sword, her eyes closed and a serene expression on her face. You would comment on how this is the only normal-looking piece of art in all of Yharnam... were it not for the Grimm at the feet of the statue, reaching for the figure with their claws and a hungry expression that you would commend the artist on being able to reproduce.

The base of the statue is a simple stone slab with a plaque on it that reads:

_Byrgenwerth Academy_

_To face the darkness, is to keep your fears at hand_

_So that we never forget what we are facing_

_And what we protect_

_Fear the Dark_

... 

Ok... was the artist a Hunter of Hunters on his free time or does the guys in B-Academy just have a very interesting sense of humor?

You go around the statue and see buildings in the distance. There are three, with the one in the middle being the tallest, having an observatory-esque tower. You might not be familiar with academies in general, but if you had to take guess, this is your intended destination.

“Finally! I was starting to think I would need to go through some sort of quest to get a key, password or whatever,” you think out loud.

You look at the road that leads to the academy and see three, robed figures approaching. It seems they are going for the “mysterious, intimidating guards” routine as their faces are completely obscured by the hoods of their attire.

“Let me guess; you’re the [porters](https://youtu.be/hMXwgN8HKvI) and I don’t suppose you’re here to welcome me?” one of the robed figures raises his hand and a flame materializes in it. “Oh. Should I consider this is your... _warm_ reception?” and, just like most people in Yharnam, these guys seem to hate joy, because as soon as you finish your well thought out joke, one of them draws a curved blade and charges at you.

You can sense their Aura is mostly normal, although there is some kind of “distortion” that you guess is the infection. While you’re not comfortable fighting them with lethal intent, you engage your bracelets’ blades after avoiding a slash from the sword guy. Better not get caught with your proverbial pants down again.

The swordsman swings again, you dodge with ease and retaliate with a punch aimed to disarm, only for him to jump back and the robed figure with the flame on his hand to hurl a fireball that explodes upon contact with you.

You advance over the flames, fist ready to punch the third figure that had remained immobile since the beginning of the fight. The guy bents his back like he is in a limbo competition and your fist goes over him. He lays on the ground and sweeps your legs from under you. The pyro of the trio jumps right in and thrust his hand at you, a column of flames sprouting from it and pushing you back.

 _They’re well-coordinated._ you think right before the pyro throws another explosive fireball right at your face, blinding you, _Son of a bitch!_

As you try to recover your sight, you sense two of the porters approaching and assume a defensive stance. You’re soon reminded that you’re not one of those blind, martial artists as you feel sword blows and claw slashes all over your open defenses.

 

You’re kicked back and the blows cease just for a column of fire to erupt from the ground and swallow you. Thankfully your vision is back and you stand up to look at the trio. They seem mildly surprised you’ve survived that. You can see the third figure has some metal claw on his right hand and realize your usual tactic (charge in and punch the hell outta everything) isn’t going to work.

So, when they charge you again you run behind one of the broken, stone fences around the edge of the area, wait for the advancing weapon users to get closer and give the fence an Aura empowered kick that shatters it and sends rubble rocketing towards them.

Unable to dodge all of the debris, the robed figures try to bat it away with their weapons. This blindsides them to your charge, giving you a chance to close in on the swordsman and punch his guts, his face and grab his sword arm, forcing it behind his back. He struggles, but you’re more than strong enough to ignore it.

You see the pyro positioning himself to help his comrade and the one with the claw circling around you, looking for an opening. You grin as they make their move, trying to close in on you in a pincer formation; the pyro throwing a fireball as the one with the claws get close.

You lift your captive by his arm, spinning him like a rag doll and hitting his companion, taking him for the ride and throwing the two in the path of the fireball. As you’ve expected, it explodes once the two make contact, throwing them to the ground and weakening their Auras.

While the pyro recovers from his surprise at seeing you turn their strategy against them, you approach one of the trees on the border of the arena, grab it and uproot it. You feel a fireball colliding, followed by footsteps and a spray of fire upon your back. You reward the caster by batting him away with the tree and throwing it like a javelin at him. A really huge javelin that slams on his face and reduces his Aura to dangerous levels.

The other two see what you did to their companion and seem to shake in anger. They then ignite their weapons in flames.

_Do they have the same Semblance?_

It's quite rare to meet two Semblances alike, so _three_ matching Semblances could even be considered a sort of miracle. It almost makes you feel bad for beating their asses...

Almost.

The two blade users attack, forcing you to block with the compartment of your blades. They try to overpower you, pushing against your raised arms.

_Fat chance._

Your Aura is very strong compared to most Huntsmen and Huntresses and your physical prowess is, to quote Instructor Torchwick, “fucking absurd”. You’ve yet to meet a human or Faunus that can overpower you in a contest of strength. Also, you’ve further trained your strength so your personal, hands-on stile could be applied in battle against Grimm. Against human opponents, you don’t even need the boost of your Semblance most of the time unless they’re using a combo of Aura and Semblance or are trained in how to fight against Huntresses.

Still, the two porters try to at least get their weapons closer to your face, probably hoping to either inconvenience you or melt your face off.

“I’ll let you boys in on a little secret; fire doesn’t hurt me,” to get your point across you grab their weapons with your hands, feeling the heat, but not being bothered by it in the least. It doesn’t even affect your clothes, thanks to your Aura. “because. I. Burn.”

You rip the sword from the hands of one of the robed guys and crush the claws of the others, rendering them useless. Before they can recover, you bash their heads together, retract your blades and punch the porters’ faces under the hoods.

The two go down and you feel another explosive fireball impacting against your back. You turn and glare at the offender, who seems to quickly realize he "done fucked up". You run charge and he still tries to burn you.

The effect of your hand coming out of a column of fire probably makes him shit his pants, as you’ve heard him scream when you grab his cloak’s collar.

“Weren’t you listening?!” you throw him over your head, having him bounce on the ground. “I BURN!” and kick him away, to join with his comrades.

As the three get up you see their hoods fall and reveal three brunettes with caramel-colored eyes and identical, rugged faces.

 _Triplets. That might explain the coordination._ you think, although you wouldn’t really know, since you don’t have any siblings. “Look, as you can see, you can’t beat me. So how about you just let me pass and- wait! DON'T!!!”

You see them taking out vials with some red liquid, which you can already guess what it is. You try to warn them, but they either ignore you or don’t listen before jabbing it on their legs, injecting the Blood directly in their bodies.

You engage your blades again, waiting for something to happen.

When it does, their Aura starts to get heavily distorted. Not to the same level as Gascoigne, but the sensation of it being vented off is one you’re never going to forget. Then, as you’ve expected, they start to groan and clutch themselves before the sound of flesh being ripped, bones being rearranged and roars is heard.

When the process is over the three brothers look like a horrific cross between an Ursa, a Deathstalker and a fire Grimm called Furnace, respectively. Part of their faces are stretched to the point you can see the red of muscle tissue and bone protrusions coming out of their skull.

The one that has Ursa looks had his arm mutated into a hairy, dark-furred claw. He also got taller and his shoes burst as his feet turned into hind paws. His face is stretched, his teeth grew to the point they are over his lips.

The one looking like a Deathstalker has a pincer coming out of his mouth and part of his face having been _ripped_ due to it growing. A red, glowing eye, replaced his left one and his arm is now a bloodied, dark pincer with a bone plate covering it. Also, there are insect legs growing out of his normal legs, ripping the base of the cloak, and a stinger poking from behind him.

The half-Furnace porter looks, by far, the most mutated one. His face looks like it was literally burned off and his eyes and mouth gave place to fire pools. His arms grew longer and thinner, the hands becoming claws which glowed white-hot with heat. Part of his cloak is charred and burned and you can see his body is either burnt patches of skin or the pitch-black of the Grimm.

They attack. Just like with Gascoigne, disabling them became impossible now as their attacks are strong enough to force you to use your Aura and Semblance to block and you have to worry with the stinger trying to skewer you. You have no idea if it has any poison, but you don’t have the luxury to test it out. 

“Damn it!” you curse as the half-Deathstalker manages to break your poise with an uppercut of his pincer. You dodge the other two, getting a heated cut on your midsection for you troubles.

Then the half-Deathstalker grabs your leg with his pincer, tries to crush it, but meets resistance in the form of your Aura. So, he lifts and throws you to the ground, the half-Ursa and half-Furnace pile up on you and try to impale your belly. Their claws manage to pierce skin and make you feel pain before your Aura stops them.

You grab their transformed limbs and force them out, just for the half-Deathstalker to grab your midsection with his pincer and lift you in the air. He tries to crush you again, your Aura straining to absorb the damage, but it can’t continue like this.

You see his stringer posing for an attack. It's either you or him...

You choose him and power your fist with your Semblance as your blade slides out and punch the half-Grimm on his face.

The blade sinks in with alarming ease as your fist cave his skull in, his Aura in no condition to mount any sort of defense and his head doesn’t have the bone masks that Grimm commonly do. He collapses like a puppet having his strings cut.

You turn to the other two as they come and attack, the half-Furnace throwing a storm of fireballs in your direction as the half-Ursa tries to slash you when the hail of fire lets up. They don’t seem to be redoubling their efforts like they did when you hurt the pyro (Grimm don’t care for others).

_They’re gone, aren’t they?_

When the bear claw comes again, you grab its wrist, now being forced to use some of your strength to stop it. You punch its shoulder, the blade of your bracelet piercing into muscle and sinew, making it go limp. You grab its arm again and supplex the monster. Getting up and turning to the other one.

_They didn’t even hesitate to take that thing._

This one is pathetically easy to dispatch. It’s clear that he was never built to take a beating, relying on his brothers to take the brunt of things as he stood on the sidelines providing support. This didn’t change as he turned into a Grimm since his fire attacks do nothing to you and his claw swipes are highly telegraphed.

You punch its shoulders, blades digging into burnt flesh, but it retaliates, managing to score a hit on your face that almost takes your eye out. Your eyes go red even though your Aura repairs the damage.

Some might call you vain for being angry over your pretty face being scarred. Well, being a little vain never killed anybody. Except for this poor sod, who gets another punch to the shoulders, this time the breaking bone and digging deep enough that his arms went limp.

The half-Grimm tries to breath fire on you. You grab his face, closing his mouth and feel the heat filling up his head, the flames on his eyes becoming more incandescent. You cover his eyes too, letting the pressure build up. You don't let go until the pressure of the flames inevitably becomes too much for his still human head to handle. It inflates and explodes, pieces of burnt flesh raining around you two and some clinging to your clothes. 

This is a good reason for Furnaces to have only a flame coming out of their hollow necks instead of a head.

The body then falls back and blood starts to spill out of the stump of its neck.

As you get off your high, you look down on the corpse and, upon realizing just what you did, feel a new wave of nausea coming. You put your hand over your moth, trying to control your breath.

_Did I... did I seriously kill him l-like this? Over a scratch?!_

You’ve killed Grimm before for the same reason and this one looked _inhuman_ enough that you ignored the fact he was a person turned into one. You didn’t even blink while letting his head explode in a shower of gore.

You feel horrible. So much you don’t even notice the half-Ursa twin is still alive as he tackles you to the ground, putting his good hand around your neck and choking you.

You grab his hand and could have easily broken it until you look at his two very human eyes and see there is a spark of intelligence there. You hesitate.

“You’re pretty though, bitch,” he finally speaks, his voice carrying a growl at each word even while you can hear a very human voice behind it. “But we’re superior to you. Yharnam is superior to you rabble."  

You push his hand away and get up, throwing him to the ground. As you take some air in, you look at the half-Grimm getting up and trying to attack you again. You retract your blade and punch his guts, making him lose his air and fall on his knees.

“I don’t want to kill you, so please... stop...” you say, your tone becoming somber. “It shouldn’t be this way...” you hear him mumble something. “What was that?”

“I... must... defend... Byr... Byrgenwerth’s... secrets...” he tries to get up, you grab him by his collar and bring his twisted face close to yours.

“Look around you,” he refuses to do so, giving you a scowl. “Your brothers are dead, killed by my hand. You took that Blood shit and for what? To defend the secrets of a bunch of assholes in-“

“Don’t you dare insult Headmaster Micolash, wench!” he punches you in the face, its strong enough you lose your grip on him. “He taught us our place. He taught us how to survive. We don’t have fear! We aren’t afraid of the Grimm or you!” 

“REALLY?!” you try to reign in your anger. This guy isn’t making any sense. He should be cursing you for killing his friends, not for insulting some dickwad who is letting an entire city become a Grimm nest. “And letting people die for your supposed 'master' is ok?!”

“The worthy shall evolve. The unworthy will be consumed. The Dark’s secrets are only for the eyes of those that can comprehend them,” he speaks in a tone of one who recites a religious scripture.

That is as much as you can take.

This guy clearly doesn’t care that you killed the others. He doesn’t care for the people suffering on Yharnam. He doesn’t care that he now looks like something out of a child’s nightmare. He doesn’t care because Grimm are incapable of caring.

So he probably doesn’t care even when you punch his head off in a vicious, Semblance-powered uppercut. 

The body falls back, blood spurting from his neck, but you don’t feel the same wave of nausea that you did before. Instead you are disgusted and angry. 

You simply can’t stand it when people try to justify the death and sacrifice of innocents to the Grimm in the name of “worthiness”, or “right to rule” or any other bullshit motive people give for their selfish ambitions. You understand people die because it’s inevitable; you try to save some, but have to let others die because otherwise you lose everybody. It’s the kind of thing that routinely occurs in Remnant.

What you don’t understand and refuse to accept is someone belittling the value of another life. Just hearing it is enough to get you in the mood to start breaking some bones and-

You hear clapping.

You turn to the main road and see someone in the Church Hunter’s garb. The figure stops clapping and remove the hood showing a youthful, feminine face with mismatching eyes and a head with hair that’s divided into three different colors.

 _That’s... pretty fashionable._ it’s such a screaming contrast of everything you’ve seen in Yharnam until now, but something you would expect out of some eccentric Huntress from the Guild.

The girl looks at the corpses and back at you- did she just give you a thumbs up?

“What?” you let out, but the girl still doesn’t speak any words, merely points at you and beat in her chest. “Are you saying you’re... proud of me?” the girl nods.

Is she one of those bloodthirsty types? Those whack jobs are never good news. Maybe you should just leave. No sudden moves... she might take it as an invitation.

“YANG!!!” a familiar voice calls and you see a red blur coming down the main road right behind the tricolored woman.

“Ruby?!”

You’re so concentrated on the crimson wearing, young woman that you don’t even notice the multicolored girl scowling and suddenly disappearing from where she stands, shattering _the space_ she was in and reappearing behind you.

“HEY!” you exclaim in a startled tone.

“STAY AWAY FROM HER!! SHE-” you never get to hear what Ruby has to say.

In the moment the strange girl’s hand touches your shoulder you feel like somebody ripped your body apart, threw it in a blender full of esoteric colors and spit it right out with everything put in the wrong place.

In short: you fall face first into a marble floor.

Looking back you see the girl waving to you before she _shatters_ the space again and leave you alone.

“Who are you?!”

Or not so alone...

You turn and notice you’re in a humongous room. There are stained glasses on both sides and an altar with candles, bottles and some imposing, ominous-looking statue of a... woman-like thing looming above it. Is that a skull on the altar?

Also, there’s a tall, white haired lady dressed in a tattered, white cloak, rags and looking very angry that you suddenly crashed in (or more like _shattered_ in. Heh).

“Um... look. I can expla-“

“Leave before I call the guard!” she practically screeches. “This is a sacred place! Non-Yharnamites are not-“ before she can continue her tirade, she starts coughing violently.

“Look, I’m sorry to bother you-” you try to calm her down by using a comforting tone and trying to approach her.

Apparently, that is the wrong thing to do.

“Don’t get close to me! Your presence here stains this sacred-” she starts hacking again. This time blood comes out of her mouth.

 _This looks very famili... oh crap!_ you remember Qrow had bouts of cough like this. “Are you alright? Did you take the medici-“

“SHUT UP!!! This is a probation! I’ll pass and show I am worthy of the secrets of-” she sounds fanatical right until she starts hacking again.

You can see blood dripping on the floor from her hands and try to get closer to her. She turns to the altar and kneels, mumbling some kind of prayer that you can’t identify as her tone is rushed. She obviously won’t listen to you, so you try to look at things by yourself.

You almost gasp at seeing the state of her Aura. It’s just like Gascoigne’s when he fought you. Worse, her Aura seems to be on the same level as his, which means... 

You hear a sound of flesh ripping and see a spike protruding out of the lady’s back. She doesn’t stop praying or panic. In fact she seems to redouble her efforts and you can now hear what she’s saying:

“...rought it we gaze into the mysteries of existence. Rid us of the malaise that afflicts the ignorant...”

There’s a ”CRACK”, just like the sound of bones rearranging their position. The woman hunches right when it sounds. She’s going to turn right before you and she won’t even listen to anything you say...

“Bring us the secrets hidden in the Dark, so we may evolve from this ruined, suffering forms...”

Another crack and a spike protrude from her shoulder. You know what will happen. It’s practically been set in stone the moment she got infected.

_... should they ever become a Grimm, they would want to be killed as soon as possible if they aren’t able to do so themselves._

Ruby had said that. You don’t know if this is the case, but- more “CRACK”s and her voice now has a growl to it.

“Grant us sight. Grant us eyes. Grant us sight. Grant us eyes...”

“I’m sorry!” you practically cry as you advance towards her. The woman only has enough time to turn and look at you. All you can see in her eyes is fanatical devotion mixed with madness. They’re turning a glowing red as you put your hands around her head.

There’s one last “CRACK”...

Everything becomes silent...


	8. Conspirators and Criminals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yang realizes Yharnam is not the kind of city she likes. Not one bit...

If anybody appeared right now, you wonder what they would be angry at the most; the corpse of the woman almost becoming a Grimm, or the fact that you are throwing up inside the skull on the altar that is probably some sort of religious icon.  
  
The skull in question is obviously non-human and non-Faunus, unless there is a Faunus kind that has a head that looks like that that of a Faust or some other sort of Grimm that has a snout.  
  
Either way, you’re too "preoccupied" to worry about such details.  
  
Eventually, you stop your retching and try to get your breathing back under control. This felt even worse than that time with Gascoigne since you were the one to commit the deed now. Ruby said the only way to make sure they were dead was cutting off the head, but you honestly don’t have the stomach to further mutilate the body.  
  
Also, you’ve been... busy for quite sometime. So, if she wasn’t dead, you would probably be fighting a giant Grimm right now.  
  
You touch your back against the altar and let yourself slide down to the ground, hugging your knees, feeling small and guilty. It’s almost the same sensation you’ve felt when you understood that your mother would never be... well, your mother. You’ve thought at the time that it was somehow your fault, but the truth was: Huntress Raven simply didn’t have a single maternal bone in her whole body.  
  
You scowl at the unwanted memory. This is not the time, nor the place for your mommy issues. Besides, you’re no longer a little girl. You’re a grown woman, an Ace Huntress on a mission.  
  
Looking up, you get to your feet and slap yourself (with enough strength to bring down a grown man) feeling your Semblance act up and a spread of heat throughout your body.

  
You look at the corpse. The face of the woman is turned in your direction. You feel that sensation of guilty again...  
  
(Her blood is in your hands. It will always be)  
  
“I’m so sorry...” you let some tears fall as you say that and walk out of the cavernous room. As much as you didn’t want to leave the body like this, there is no place for you to bury her nearby and burning a corpse inside a closed room is a horrible idea.  
  
As you climb down the stairs at the entrance of the room, you realize that bitch (mental note: wring her scrawny neck the next time you see her) dropped you into some sort of temple. It certainly explains that lady’s attitude towards you and the really creepy statues of skeletal, feminine figures with long hair covering their entire face and holding lances that formed arcs at every five steps.  
  
Finally arriving at the base of the staircase, you approach the large double-doors and... they don’t even budge when you push. There are no handles for you to pull either.  
  
...  
  
_Ok. New plan: find that cunt and beat her to an inch of her life._ right as you finish that thought, you engager your right bracelet’s blade, enhance your fist and weapon with your Aura, punch in a hole in the crack between the doors, grab one of them and then pull it open.  
  
The awkward position makes it a bit difficult, but you eventually manage to slip outside, finding yourself under a large balcony with a humongous staircase bellow and a path to your left with more sinister statues of what looked like beggars with sheets over their bodies.  
  
_Am I back to the Grand Cathedral?_ you wonder, recognizing that staircase. _I swear, if that-_  
  
You stop as you see somebody tracing a graceful arc in the air (or as graceful as somebody who looks like he was throw in the air can do, that is) towards you while screaming. You make some quick calculations in your head, position yourself, extend your arms and catch him in what resembles a bridal carry.  
  
The first thing you notice is blonde, scraggly hair and wide, terrified, blue eyes. His attire consists of gray and white robes with a golden armor underneath. He looks at you.  
  
The Call is too strong to resist.  
  
“So... do you always _fall_ for every women like this or am I that special?”  
  
He blushes. Finally! A normal reaction to your puns. You were starting to give up on Yharnam as a lost case.  
  
You hear lumbering steps. Looking down, there is a giant, mole-like Grimm known as a Craver (sometimes you wonder what the guys that named the Grimm species were thinking). You raise an eyebrow when you see it’s using a giant cape, leg cuffs and a top hat.  
  
_... I’m pretty sure there’s a joke here._ you think as you notice the ball and chain the thing is dragging along.  
  
The blonde in your arms gasps and gets to his feet, drawing a sword and shield combo and standing in front of you in a protective stance.  
  
“Stay back! I’ll deal with this!”  
  
You’re not very confident in this guy’s proclamation. Maybe it’s the fact his voice trembled a bit at the end. Maybe it’s because you could see his sword arm shifting the grip every now and then, like he wasn’t used to the weapon. Or maybe it’s because he charged at the monster in such a reckless way that _you_ raise an eyebrow.  
  
The Grimm locks its eyes on him, its abnormally large and sharp incisor teeth trying to close upon the man’s head, who rises his shield and manages to block the attack. He slashes at the monster and scores a blow on its midsection.  
  
Maybe he’s not as bad as he lo- your curious expression immediately transforms into one of worry upon sensing the Grimm charging the iron ball with... some kind of glowing, blood-red energy that creates tendrils around the weapon. You don’t know what it is, but every part of you screams that is feels _wrong_.  
  
“Watch out!” you warn him.  
  
“Huh?” and the guy looks at you instead of his adversary! What the-?!  
  
The Grimm swings the iron ball and hits the blonde knight. You hear the sound of something breaking when it hits. The blonde then hits the nearby wall and falls to the ground, his arm and leg twisted in an awkward way that indicates they are probably broken.  
  
_But his Aura is still up! What gives?!_  
  
Deciding you’ve had let the guy play shinning knight long enough, you engage your bracelets and charge at the Grimm, attracting its attention. It enhances the ball and chain again with that blood-red energy and attempt to crush you with an overhead attack.  
  
You avoid the concrete-shattering blow, having to adjust your footing due to the minor tremor it sent on the steps. The Grimm pulls the chain, bringing the iron ball back and it stops the sphere with its clawed foot. You let the Craver try to crush you with its iron ball again and avoid it, approaching the thing as it pulls the ball back and tries to hit your back. You turn, jump over the sphere and sprint to the Grimm again. Before the monster can attack, you sink your blade onto its chest and drag it to the side, leaving a large gash on the Grimm’s chest.  
  
The Craver roars and tries to tackle you with its massive bulk. You respond by charging your fist with your Semblance and punching its jaw, breaking it. You enhance your arm with your Semblance again and thrust it into the creature’s chest. The blade facilitates the penetration as you sink your arm up to your elbow into the Grimm’s chest, grasp the first thing your hand comes into contact with and _crush_ it. You feel your hand getting drenched, but when it comes out its completely clean.  
  
The Grimm groans and falls dead. You look back at the ball and chain left by the creature and examine it. It doesn’t contain any traces of whatever it was the Grimm used.  
  
_What was that?_ you wonder. Then you hear another groan, a human one this time. _Oh damn! I forgot!_  
  
Turning, you see the blonde trying to get up, but having no success thanks to his broken leg. You have to admit: it’s quite surprising he isn’t even crying in pain right now. Kneeling next to him you survey his wounds. It doesn’t seem he’s too injured and his aura is mostly normal.  
  
An idea comes to your head:  
  
“Look, your Aura is acting up, but I don’t think it’ll be able to patch you up like this,” you tell him as he looks at you. “This is gonna hurt, but I have to put the bones back in place. Ok?” he simply nods and you get to work.  
  
The blonde hisses. Honestly, you were expecting wails of pain, not this. What is this guy made of? As you manage to put things back in place (after a few wrong attempts that your guinea pig doesn’t seem to notice), his Aura acts and mends his wounds to a point where he can at least (shakily) stand.  
  
The knight thanks you with an embarrassed smile. You smile back... and slaps him on the back on the head (you measure your strength of course. It wouldn't do for the guy to bowl over again).  
  
“What the hell were you thinking?! Not only did you charge at a Grimm a lot bigger than you, but you took your eyes off it in middle of the fight?!”  
  
“I’m... I’m sorry...” the blonde said, his expression miserable.  
  
You sigh, your anger leaving you. The guy looks like a kicked puppy, so you do the same thing you do to any puppies you meet on the streets: you pat him.  
  
“Sorry... I just got worried and the day has been stressful enough,” he gives you a look at realizing what you are doing, but you ignore that. “Though you seem to have an incredible pain tolerance.”  
  
“Oh, that’s thanks to the Blood I took before. Thing really boosts your physical capabilities and pain tolerance.”  
  
“... the Blood...” you mutter, your eyes narrowing and your voice becoming somber. Blondie doesn’t seem to notice as he rambles on.  
  
“Yep, real life saver sometimes. Though the sensation of strength and power is quite addicting... no wonder there’s guys that get drunk on it,” he looks down.  
  
“Then stop using it.”  
  
The knight-wannabe looks up, seemingly surprised by your statement. Before he can talk, you continue:  
  
“You shouldn’t rely on something like that. Before too long, you’re going to find yourself turning in-“ you stop once your mind catches up with what you’re saying. You don’t have any proof of your suspicions and even if you tell him what you saw, he might just think you’re crazy.  
  
“‘Turning into’… what?”  
  
“Eeeeh... a Blood junkie!” you quickly come up with a suitable excuse. You just hope he-  
  
“Oh... yeah, you’re right. That would be a very pathetic way to end up dead or hunted.”  
  
-buys it like the total dope he appears to be... not that you’re complaining, but that sounded weak even to you. Is this guy that trusting?  
  
“Anyway...” he clears his throat, trying to assume what he probably thinks to be a solemn tone. “I’m Jaune Arc, Executioner in-training. As you saved me, I am now in debt to you. So, if there is anything that you need, which is within my power, don’t hesitate to ask.”  
  
This sounds rather useful. However...  
  
“Executioner in-training?”  
  
“Ummm... yeah...” Jaune drops the solemn tone, now sounding a bit awkward at you pointing that out. “I was supposed to already be a full fledged one, but Master Logarious stepped down from the leadership and my training arrangements kinda got lost on the reorganization.  
  
“Also, I'm... not very good with a sword," he looks at the weapon in questions, sighing. "If I had my wheel, that Craver would already be paste on the steps."  
  
“‘Wheel’? How does that work?”  
  
You’ve seen your fair share of exotic and unconventional-looking weapons (some of which you gave a test drive and a Yang Seal of Approval@). So whenever you hear about some possible new weapon you haven’t seen, it tends to pick your curiosity. Though, you certainly don’t get _excited_ about it to the same degree of people like Ruby.  
  
“It’s designed to look like a chariot wheel. About my size. Golden. Heavy and hard enough that a Major Ursa would break its teeth if it ever tried to chew on it. Specially made to break Grimm bone plates like they’re made of glass,” Jaune said, his tone becoming more confident as he speaks of the weapon. “Quite the badass weapon, if I do say so myself.”  
  
Ok. You gotta concede; it does sound badass. However...  
  
“Isn’t it hard to swing with all the weight concentrated on the borders? Sounds like it would be hard to carry it around, not to mention making you slow.”  
  
Jaune opens his mouth to retort... then closes it, as his expression becomes a pondering one... and finally looks downcast as he realizes you are right.  
  
“But, yeah, it does sound badass,” you amend, making the guy give you a smile. “Anyway, I have to get going, so...”  
  
“Wait. Why are the Grand Cathedral’s doors open?” the blonde suddenly asks as he notices the open doors behind you. “I’ve heard they closed it on request of Vicar Amelia, who would be praying for Yharnam.”  
  
“Yeah... funny story,” you say, quickly trying to think on some excuse.  
  
“Um... pardon me, but why do you smell like bile?” the blond question, apparently only noticing your state now.  
  
“Well... you see...” _Think, Yang. THINK!!!_ that’s when an idea comes to you. A horrible, horrible idea that your conscience would certainly punished you for, but, honestly, you can’t afford to spend time in jail.  
  
Summoning the same sadness you had before, you let it carry over your voice:  
  
“I… saw the doors open and... decided to investigate and...” you give some pauses to reinforce the fact you’re quite nervous. You even look to the side with a grim expression on your face. “I saw the Vicar’s corpse.”  
  
“WHAT?!?!?!” Jaune exclaims. “The Vicar’s-?! But... That’s... who would do that?!”  
  
“I think I saw somebody. It was a woman... brown and pink hair... used the Church Hunter’s attire, but she, like, _broke_ as if she was made of glass and then wasn’t there anymore.”  
  
Well, if you had to invent a lie and incriminate someone in your place, might as well do it to someone who deserves it. Besides, you’re pretty sure that bitch left you in the Grand Cathedral on purpose.  
  
“Graahhh! Not another enlisted Hunter going rouge on a Blood-craze! Honestly, Master Logarious warned the Church again and again about unsupervised distribution of Blood, but nooo! They promised the people strength to defend themselves and the city-” and Jaune went on a rantiagain.  
  
You feel horrible. No matter that the tri-colored cunt deserves everything that comes her way, but this is the first time you've killed a completely innocent victim.  
  
“- I’m going to have to check the body...” Jaune speaks in a dejected tone. “Anyway, thanks for warning me. I’m going to talk to my superiors and place a warrant on this criminal. On my honor as an Exe... well, Executor in-training, I will see that she is brought to justice,” the blonde leaves you and goes up into the Cathedral.  
  
You take a moment to smother down the guilt that is threatening to consume you. You have bigger problems to take care of.  
  
(You hope this justification lasts)  
  
Going down the stairs, you can finally see the plaza down there... and the other people in white and grey robes patrolling. You quickly turn and hide behind one of the staircase’s fences, eyeing them from your position as they split and some come up the stairs where you are hiding.  
  
You whisper a curse and do the only thing you can in this situation: leg it and hope they haven’t noticed you. As you get back to the beginning of the stairs leading to the doors of the Grand Cathedral, you dive behind a statue and see the guys still coming up.  
  
_I doubt they’re gonna be as easy to convince as Jaune if they discover Amelia’s corpse._ you look around and see the path to the left of the doors of the Cathedral. No guarantee, they won’t try to find you, but it’s better than nothing.  
  
As you run, you find yourself on a large balcony overlooking a drop into what looks like a residential district. Were your Aura in good state, you wouldn’t hesitate to jump, but after fighting your way through the Grimm in the sewer and those three brothers, you’re not so confident in your chances. Also, you can hear the footsteps of those guys approaching.  
  
Looking around, you see a spiral staircase to your left. You climb it, three steps a time, just to arrive at the end and find a door. A locked door. The Executioner are still coming as you consider forcing the door open. That is when a “click” sounds and the door swings open inwardly. You don’t even think before pushing whoever opened it inside and closing the door behind you. Luckily, the guy left the key on it, so you turn it and lock the door again.  
  
You look at the one who opened the door… and raise an eyebrow upon seeing a bucket-style helmet and a fine suit. You’re about to speak when you hear voices from the other side of the door:  
  
“Not here...”  
  
“Are you sure you've heard- ”  
  
“I thought so. Anyway, this is a door to the Upper Cathedral Ward, completely outside our jurisdiction. Let the others deal with it...”  
  
You wait a bit more and the voices sound weaker until they finally fade away. You sigh in relief… and then remember you have a guy with a questionable taste in fashion right in front of you. Rounding up on the guy, you see that he didn’t move from his spot. Before you could think on how to deal with him, he speaks:  
  
“Ah, you must be the foreign Huntress that has gotten everyone up in arms.”  
  
Welp, that settles it. You grab him by the collar of his sine suit and reveal your blade on your other hand, pointing at his face with it.  
  
“H-Hey, calm down! I am not going to give you away! If I wanted that, I would have done it when the Executioners were on the other side of that door.”  
  
You stop and consider it, realizing he was right. But you are still wary of this guy and the fact that he’s hiding his face doesn’t help matters. The only people you ever saw who covered their identity like that were criminals.  
  
You keep your grip on the guy as you interrogate him:  
  
“Start talking. Who are you and how did you hear about me?”  
  
“Can you put me down first?” he asks in a very polite tone, despite of his situation. You just shoot a glare at him. “… very well. I’ve heard about you from our contact on the high clergy. It seems an informant of the Executioners told them there was an outsider in town and they sent an order of capture to all enlisted ‘Hunters’.”  
  
From his tone, it's clear he wants to spit when talking about those guys back on Central Yharnam. You wonder if he doesn’t because you are gripping his suit, or because it would be very unhygienic to do so when he's wearing a bucket on his head.  
  
“As for who I am; my name is Valtr. One of the lieutenants of Dawn’s Song, the League for the Liberation of Yharnam. Though we don’t use that second one in full too often. Too lengthy for a conversation.”  
  
You raise an eyebrow at that declaration. He sounds just like those Libertarian guys back in Cainhurst who disagreed with the rule of their Queen.  
  
“I wasn’t aware there was some sort of royalty on Yharnam.”  
  
“There isn’t, but that doesn’t mean we’re out of oppressors to oppose.”  
  
“The Church?” you surmise.  
  
“The Church,” he nods.  
  
You finally let the guy go. Valtr takes some time to adjust his collar and suit back into pristine form, clears his throat and speaks:  
  
“So, what is a foreign Huntress like you doing in our humble city?”  
  
You expected some irony in that sentence, but you don’t pick any. Quickly weighing the pros and cons of telling this guy about your mission, you conclude there isn't any problems with that. If he and this Dawn’s Song guys are anything like what you expect, they will probably support you, since they tend to have a “fuck the system” mentality.  
  
“I need to get to Birgo-Bermy-that academy you guys have at the edge of the forest,” you will probably have to learn how to pronounce that sometime or another, because it’s getting annoying-  
  
“Ah. You mean Byrgenwerth Academy.”  
  
\- when everybody around you is capable of saying the name.  
  
“Yeah. Heard they were researching something about the Grimm. Does your informant knows anything about it?”  
  
“Sadly, Byrgenwerth has effectively shut its doors to the people. The entire Academy is under lock-down. Not even the students are allowed to leave.”  
  
“Wait, you mean there is still young people there? Why are they keeping them in?!” you knew it was a possibility, but you thought at least the parents would pull their children out of the Academy once this shit started.  
  
“Hard to say. Might be because it’s safer there. The Grimm have been avoiding the Academy’s surroundings. Actually, if memory serves well, they practically _ran away_ from there on one occasion and never went back.  
  
“You should have seen it; Grimm running into the city like people fleeing from an incursion. They even ignored the Huntsmen and Huntresses that put their numbers down, save for those they trampled underfoot in their mindlessness to vacate Byrgenwerth’s premises. I dare say the things looked downright _panicked_.”  
  
_That… sounds incredibly disturbing._ this almost makes you don’t want to get anywhere close to B-Academy.  
  
Valtr sighs as if the subject tires him out.  
  
“Things have taken a turn to the disturbing ever since Master Willem’s death.”  
  
“Willem…” you’ve heard that name before, somewhere. There was a mention of him on your briefing. What was it that they said again?  
  
“You didn’t heard of Master Willem? I’m surprised, considering his dealings with the Guild.”  
  
“Oh?” that piques your curiosity. You’ve met a few big wigs of the Guild on occasion and even shook hands with an Old Hunter when your father brought you to visit the training center. “Care to enlighten me?”  
  
“Certainly. Master Willem was the late Headmaster of Byrgenwerth Academy. His family founded it and some people believe that they helped build the city as well.  
  
“He was an extraordinary man. In his youth, he came up with a proposal to the Hunter’s Guilt; train the future Huntsmen to not only kill the Grimm, but also to act as a sort of public faces for the Guild, so they could form bounds with those they protected, while projecting the image of heroes to give the people hope.”  
  
You vaguely remember how your father always acted like everything was "ok" around other people, even after he lost his hand. It made it look like something that he always did out of habit and you latter learned that, indeed, the Guild always made a point that Hunters should smile and do their best to "soothe people's worries".  
  
“From what I’ve heard, the Guild liked the idea and started to hire those that were skilled in public speeches and negotiation, even if they were not Huntsmen or Huntresses themselves. I once heard something about them pardoning swindlers and conman as long as they agreed to teach trainees how to not get deceived, or something like that. But I never believed in these unfounded rumors.”  
  
So that is why Instructor Torchwick became… Instructor Torchwick.  
  
“Yeah... unfounded...” of course, you’re not gonna tell him that.  
  
“But alas... there is nothing to be done about it now. His two pupils, Micolash and Laurence, took different paths after his death. Laurence became leader of the Executioners after Logarius resigned the post and Micolash is now the new headmaster of Byrgenwerth.  
  
“Unfortunately, both don’t seem up to the job... the fact that they effectively isolated themselves from the people once this entire mess started only cements it. If Master Willem, bless his soul, could see them now, I’m sure he would die again from pure shame.”  
  
Laurence and Micolash... now you have names. That is good... you now knew whose balls you have to crush for all the shit you’ve had to put up with.  
  
“Look, this is all really... informative. But, as I’ve said, I need to get to B-Academy,” Valtr tilts his head in confusion, if the light inclining of the bucket helmet is any indication. You ignore it. “So, I hope you don’t intent on stopping me or any-”  
  
“Quite the contrary! I would like to help you.”  
  
“... really?” that was new. The only people that didn’t stand in your path had tried to dissuade you from going to B-Academy. However- “What’s the catch?”  
  
“Nothing that would be at odds with your mission, I assure you. I only would like to know what they discovered regarding this plague. If we can find a cure, then we would be closer to our goal of restoring our city.”

  
That you can actually agree with. You shake Valtr's hand, sealing the deal.

 

* * *

 

 

“I wouldn’t recommend trying the main gates again. If you really killed the guards, they are sure to double security,” Valtr spoke as soon as you told him about your little excursion on the woods of B-Academy. “No. This is work for an infiltrator. Unfortunately, our best has been missing since last week, following a trail that came from … somewhere in Yharnam.”  
  
“You don’t have anyone else?” you asked him.  
  
“It’s not a matter of personnel, it’s a matter of intelligence. Intelligence that we do not have at the moment.”  
  
_C’mon. Just because you wear a bucket, thinking it’ll protect you, doesn’t mean you’re a mo- No! Bad Yang!_ you caught yourself before letting that quip spill forth.  
  
“So what? Are you going to send me after this infiltrator of yours when you don’t even know where he went?”  
  
“Actually, it's a ‘she’… and there is someone who can tell us about it.”  
  
It's then that you realize you’ve been following Valtr deeper into the Upper Cathedral Ward. Unlike the lower districts, this one is clean and surprisingly absent of coffins, gravestones or even stray Grimm. It's actually closer to what you’ve seen on some cities. You can see the tower at the top of the Grand Cathedral behind you and, under its shadow, another building that Valtr said was an orphanage.  
  
“Who lives here?” you ask. Places like this are generally home to some very important people.  
  
“The Church’s upper echelon, like the Clergy, as well as some notable Executioners. Speaking of them, they are the ones that patrol this district’s entrances.”  
  
The houses here have gardens and are larger than the ones on the lower districts. Having a garden is a symbol of status on cities, since, normally, it’s impractical to keep one, as smaller Grimm could take advantage of it and hide in the foliage or behind the plants.  
  
“And we’re here, risking being recognized, why?”  
  
If the relationship between this resistance and the Church is anything like the one between the Libertarians and the Cainhurst Royal Family, then you were pretty sure every Executioner and Church Hunter would have a description of Valtr.  
  
Also, his bucket-helmet is like a lighthouse; impossible to miss.  
  
“Don’t worry. I know these streets like the palm of my hand,” Valtr chuckles. It's a chuckle of the "Let me tell you about that time I killed a Ursa Major with my bare hands" kind. It doesn't fill you with confidence, to say the least. “As for your question, we have an agent on the upper echelons of the Dusk Church. Someone favorable to our cause and with connections to get the intel we require.”  
  
The two of you arrive in a two story, mini mansion with a fenced garden. The Resistance Lieutenant simply opens the gates and walks to the door as if he owned the place. You follow him as he lightly taps on the door. You are about to remark that whoever he wants to talk with is probably sleeping, until you see the lights coming from the window.  
  
“Who is it?” a feminine voice asks.  
  
“The one who crushes the vermin plaguing our streets,” Valtr answers back in what was probably a code-phrase.  
  
“… that’s not the code-phrase, Valtr,” the woman inside replies.  
  
You raise your eyebrow and stare at Valtr.  
  
_Is he for real?_  
  
  
“Ah, but you do recognize it’s me.”  
  
There’s another brief silence, followed by an exasperated sigh as the door unlocks and-  
  
_Hello there, sexy!_  
  
A gorgeous and positively not-happy, blond woman with glasses and emerald eyes glares at Valtr. She’s shorter than you and Valtr by half a palm, but you can’t say it with accuracy, considering the latter’s helmet. Also, her boobs are big, close to yours in size, and her waist is thin, meaning her figure is like “ _daaaumn_ ”! You slept with Cainhurst nobles that didn’t look half as good as her.  
  
The woman looks at you. Her eyes narrow in clear distrust. You wave and give her one of your sunny smiles.  
  
She’s clearly not amused.  
  
“Who’s this?” the woman asks.  
  
“An outsider Huntress. She has agreed to help us, Glynda,” Valtr explains.  
  
_Giddy to greet you, Glynda._ You chuckle at the mental joke. It seems you did that a bit too loud, because she fixed you with one harsh stare that would put your Instructors’ to shame.  
  
Another sigh and she lets you two enter. Her house is spacious and the entrance hallway leads to a stair at the end. Glynda leads you to a living room with a nice-looking sofa and an armchair near it. The furniture also looked fancy, but honestly, you are too busy noticing Glynda’s sleeping robes hugging her figure nicely.  
  
The woman seems to sense your stare, because she throws another glance at you and then asks Valtr:  
  
“Are you sure?”  
  
“Have you seen her around Yharnam before? I sure haven’t and would remember someone with such striking features.”  
  
Did Valtr just hit on you?  
  
Glynda doesn’t seem convinced, as she looks you up and down again. Time to work your magic:  
  
“Huntress Yang, at your service ma’am. If you have a Grimm problem, you can count on me!”  
  
…  
  
Glynda throws another one of those harsh glares, clearly not impressed.  
  
_Man, does she look hot when doing that?!_  
  
“Are you _really_ sure?” she asks Valtr once more. The man just chuckles.  
  
_Ouch..._  
  
“Have I ever steered you wrong before, Glynda?” Valtr asks.  
  
“Do you want me to tell you in chronological, or alphabetical order?”  
  
“Um... why are we here again?” you start, trying to interrupt them before they can get into a lover’s spat.  
  
The blonde woman still glares at you, but Valtr takes that chance to ask her about when she last heard of someone named Blake.  
  
“She said she was on the trail of the ones behind the kidnappings.”  
  
“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait a minute!” you interrupt them. “Kidnappings?!”  
  
“Did you happen to hear about the mysterious disappearances that started three years ago? We have strong evidence to consider that the people missing were, in fact, kidnapped by someone, or a group of some ones.”  
  
You close your fists so tightly that they turn white. Valtr and Glynda seem to notice this, for he suggests that you all sit down and Glynda’s expression changes to one of simple curiosity. As you try to regain your calm, you take deep breathes. Remembering that Ruby did mention there were some disappearances, you decide to start there:  
  
“Ok, so you’re telling me that these disappearances I’ve heard about are not disappearances at all?”  
  
“That is what I’ve just said,” Glynda sat down, crossing her legs. “The Executioners and the Church simply reported such as to not cause panic, or so the official story goes. Our theory is that, most likely, people simply don’t care.”  
  
“What?” your tone is low, but the way that you clutch the sofa’s arm shows that you’re clearly holding yourself back.  
  
“Most of the reported ‘missing’ are either foreigners, beggars or homeless. People that nobody on Yharnam would care if went missing.”  
  
“And you say they are kidnappings why?”  
  
“Some servants of the families of the Upper Cathedral Ward like to gossip about how they’ve seen some shady figures on the lower districts. Figures that, and I quote, ‘looked pretty spooky. Covered in ragged clothes and carrying large sacks over their shoulders’.”  
  
“And why did nobody reported this before?!” you look at Glynda and Valtr.  
  
“Simply put, it doesn’t affect them or their families, who all live in the upper districts to better serve the Church’s upper echelon, so it’s not their problem.”  
  
You hear a sound of fabric tearing and wood being crushed. You destroyed the sofa arm under your grip, but you can’t bring yourself to give two shits about it at the moment.  
  
“So, as long as it’s far away from here, you don’t care about what happen to the people?”  
  
There’s a note of cold fury in your voice. And you thought those porters on Byrgenwerth were bad enough. Even the Cainhurst nobles, with their way of thinking, knew enough as to not simply dismiss the "weak".  
  
“Yang... Glynda didn’t mean it like that,” Valtr speaks, his tone indicating he clearly knows that you are pissed. “It’s not that _she_ thinks such. Otherwise she wouldn’t be helping us.”  
  
You count to ten when you feel like your vision is going red again. Maybe talking about the reason you came here for will help.  
  
“Ok. Blatant disrespect for the common life aside…” but not before you make one last comment, of course. Thankfully Glynda doesn’t react with an eye roll or anything like that. She simply doesn’t react to your stinging comment at all. “How exactly is this linked to B-Academy?” you ask Valtr.  
  
“You mean, Byrg-” Glynda starts.  
  
“Yeah. I meant whatever-its-name-is! Thank you very much for correcting me!” just for you to interrupt.  
  
She gives you another glare. Valtr clears his throat, stopping Glynda from starting some sort of tirade about your attitude:  
  
“Well, we started to think on how it would be possible for somebody to do these kidnappings and not be discovered for such a long time. The main question is; where are they hiding their victims? They can’t just use anywhere in the lower districts, it would attract attention and the risk of an Enlisted Hunter stumbling upon their ‘operation’ during a Hunt is simply too high.”  
  
“We have reasons to believe they have some sort of headquarters hidden away in the city,” Glynda spoke. “The problem is where? We also don’t have enough of a contingency to simply comb the entire city and there are places put under heavy surveillance by the Executioners and Church Hunters.  
  
“That is where our infiltrators come in. We’ve sent our best, Blake Belladona, to track down the responsible for the kidnappings and follow them back to their base, but I’ve lost contact with her one week ago after she said she had managed to find a trail to their location.”  
  
“Aren’t you worried she might be in trouble?” you ask.  
  
“We’ve thought on that hypothesis, but considering Belladona’s experience and training, it’s more likely she has simply gone to the ground trying to find it. Either that or she _did_ find it, but was unable to send us the information in a safe manner.”  
  
Training? Was she another one of those Huntresses from the disbanded Yharnam Division?  
  
“As for how this links back to Byrgenwerth...” Valtr calls your attention back to the initial topic. “We’ve had sightings of caravans going through the Old Settlement’s abandoned road and entering the Academy just to come back and completely disappear afterwards.  
  
“Now, this may mostly be guess work on our part, but if these kidnappers possess a place with the capacity to hide a huge number of people, hiding a few carriages would certainly be possible.”  
  
“Any idea what those carriages contained?” you query, wondering what could warrant the need to be transported like this.  
  
(You ignore the first theories that come to mind.)  
  
“No. Our agents were only able to see it from a distance and the carriages were guarded by Hunters dressed in some particularly odd garb,” Glynda says.  
  
_Of course it wouldn’t be that easy._ you sigh. “So, let me get this straight: you guys want me to find some place your best infiltrator had taken weeks to discover, get in, get her out while possibly facing kidnappers and a bunch of Huntsmen, in what will certainly be a life-or-death situation?”  
  
Glynda looks at Valtr as if to say “this was your idea”. The man looks a bit embarrassed as he speaks again:  
  
“Well... when you put it like that, it sounds dum-“  
  
“I’ll do it!” you reply with a sunny smile.  
  
Glynda does a literal double take and Valtr seems surprised as well. The blond even questions you, her eyes wide:  
  
“You will?!”  
  
“Yeah. Sounds like a good plan to me. I’m used to doing this kind of stuff all the time.”  
  
Glynda looks in incredulity to Valtr, who seems very proud that you accepted his plan. The woman then looks back at you and to Valtr once more, probably trying to decide who she’s going to berate, or who’s the crazier between you two. In the end, she brings her hand to her forehead and mumbles just loud enough for you two to hear:  
  
“I need a drink…”  
  
Funny, most people say that when they hear your awesome plans.  
  
“Can I crash here for the night? I’m kinda low on…” you look at yourself. You then remember you left your travel bag back at Iosefka’s. “Pretty much everything. And I would like my Aura to be 100% before doing this.”  
  
“Really? I thought you’ve disagreed with my 'way of thinking',” Glynda speaks, seeming to have recovered her composure.  
  
You’re about to reply when Valtr beats you to the punch:  
  
“Oh please, Glynda… everyone knows you’re not this ice-cold woman you portray yourself as,” the resistance Lieutenant receives a glare from Glynda for that. “Besides, I remember one wide-eyed Byrgenwerth student who dreamed of fighting for the good of humanity against her father’s wishes… and of finding a sexy woman while in the field to-“  
  
Before Valtr can say anymore (delicious blackmail) his head is suddenly throw back after the sound of a loud “PING” and a gunshot resonates in the house. You turn back to look at Glynda, seeing a flintlock in her hand.  
  
Did you already mention she looks hot with that scowl? Well, forget about it! She looks hot when her cheeks are pink and she’s holding a gun!  
  
“One more word Bucket Head, and the next will be enhanced with enough aura to pierce that stupid, cleaning tool you call armor.”  
  
“Pfft… Bucket Head,” you bring your hand to your mouth at that.  
  
“Did you need to shoot me?” Valtr says as he adjusts his neck, looking none the worse. It’s like this is a common thing for him.  
  
“Oh please… everybody knows you’re always reinforcing this ridiculous thing in fear of a surprise attack.”  
  
“Well, it does work when I’m talking to former team mates with a hair-trigger temp…” there’s a click as Glynda releases the safety. Valtr stops talking.  
  
“And you,” the stern blond glares at you. “You can stay, but if I so much as hear a word about it, I’ll be leaving you on the streets for the Executioners or the Grimm to find you. Whichever comes first!”  
  
With that she turns on her heels and leaves to the house’s interior.  
  
“One week.”  
  
“Beg your pardon?” one Bucket Head asks in confusion.  
  
“I bet I can bed her in one week,” you say with a grin.  
  
You can see through the only eye opening Valtr has visible on that ridiculous helmet an internal battle being fought. He finally answers:  
  
“As much as I appreciate an easy bet, I will pass Huntress Yang.”  
  
“Why? Too chicken to bet with the adults?” you edge him on, raising your eyebrows.  
  
“I simply would like a certain part of my anatomy to remain attached to my body.”  
  
Wow. It’s like you’re back on Cainhurst. That reminds you, you’ll need something for this job…  
  
In the next morning, while you’re eating breakfast, you ask Glynda for a dress. The woman nods and hands you some spares she has that you could walk on the streets with, staying outside the room while you try them out. Then you notice something. Something that is just too good an opportunity to pass up.  
  
“Hey Glynda.”  
  
“Yes?” the woman comes into the room.  
  
“I know we might have started on the wrong foot-”  
  
“'Might have'?” she interjects with a raised eyebrow.  
  
“-but since you seem to be helping this Dawn’s Song resistance group, I guess you can’t be that bad.”  
  
“How flattering…” she interrupts you yet again with a sarcastic comment, but you ignore it.  
  
“So, I want to start this again. The proper way this time.”  
  
Glynda raises an eyebrow in curiosity and you thrust your hand forward. She looks up from it to your face. You give her one of your sunny smiles. It seems to work on disarming her, as Glynda simply sighs and shakes your hand, giving you a diminutive smile.  
  
She definitely should smile more.  
  
“Greetings. I am Glynda Adeline, informant to Dawn’s Song.”  
  
“I’m Huntress Yang. I hope we can be _bossom_ budies.”  
  
Glynda looks confused at your wording… until you _bounce_ , attracting her eyes down. They widen and she looks back up at your face, her hand practically frozen as it is still holding yours.  
  
You give your best flirtatious smirk and wiggle your eyebrows.  
  
Latter, you go down to have breakfast. Valtr is on the table, his bucket hea-helmet is on the table. He actually looks pretty handsome.  
  
“So, what happened? I heard something going on above,” he asks you.  
  
“Glynda threw a bed at me.”  
  
“Ah,” he then goes back to drinking from his mug like this was nothing new.  
  
“But I saw her blush a bit before doing that,” Valtr does a spit take.  
  
Once you are prepared and Glynda tells you not to try that again unless you "wanted your ugly mug to be disfigured" (which is kinda unfair. Your mug is pretty sexy according to a lot of men and women), you’re escorted by Valtr out of the Upper Cathedral Ward and into the not-Upper Cathedral Ward.  
  
You _really_ wonder who named things in Yharnam.  
  
Anyway, the dress you've chose isn’t long as to would not hinder you in case you need to kick someone or something. It's mostly violet as to combine with your eyes and it doesn’t have any sleeves. And, just to make you an even more enticing target, it has a big cleavage window.  
  
You want to point out to Glynda how your tastes in clothing match, but after she broke the bed of her guest room in your head, you’re not very sure if the comment would be welcomed. Also, you’re not entirely sure if she wouldn’t try and kill you if she saw what you’re going to do while using that dress.  
  
“Really, what a dump. Like, really dump-y. Oh, I wish my father didn’t force me out of home and all of his riches. I even had a party to go latter and now I, a naïve, very rich girl, have to find a new home, which will probably not be up to my standards.”  
  
Like acting as a complete bimbo.  
  
“Maybe I can stay at my lover’s house. He surely could tend to my every need~” playing this is quite funny, but if anybody on the Guild ever heard of it, you would deny to hell and back... and probably threaten to tear off their legs as an extra measure. You already have enough problems with the whole “dumb blonde” jokes getting on your nerves.  
  
As you approach some stairs and prepare to continue your fake tirade, you see a child down below, standing in the middle of the deserted street. You try to approach, but she ducks deeper into the street.  
  
“Hey, wait!” breaking character, you go after her.  
  
You don’t care if this might ruin the plan, you simply can’t bare the sight of children crying... or of them being chased down by Grimm . One time is already one-too-many.  
  
Thankfully, the dress allows you to run (although these shoes are killing your feet), so you go down the stairs and enter the street. The sun doesn’t shine here and there are fumes coming out of some grates, but there is enough light for you to see the girl going into another part of the alley.  
  
You follow and see a door falling off its hinges at the corner the girl entered. There are no lights or any sign of life inside the house, safe for sobbing sounds. You enter, looking around for any threats, but seeing none you go deeper, noticing all the upturned chairs and tables, the claw marks on the walls and the few furniture that are still standing, or haven’t been torn to ribbons.  
  
_Three guesses as to why this house is abandoned..._  
  
You pass the living room and find the door to what looks like a closet ajar. Opening it slightly, you find the little girl there, her head hidden behind her legs as she cries.  
  
“Hey,” you kneel down, trying your best to look as nonthreatening as possible. “Are you alright?” you reach for the little girl… just for your hand to phase through her shoulder. “Wh-!” you barely have the time to let out your surprise before you feel something jabbing into your neck.  
  
You try to look to your side, but only your eyes answer the command. The rest of you feels unresponsive and numbed, like…  
  
_Like somebody pumped me full of very strong anesthesia._ you realize as you see a blade with blood-red, energy tendrils swirling around it and, following the arm holding the blade, a tanned, emerald haired girl with red eyes.  
  
Thankfully, her eyes aren’t glowing or showing any kind of madness or hatred on them. No. Hers show only malice of a calculated kind. Like that of the criminals and scum you’ve had to deal with in the past.  
  
“Just so you know: normally, I try to stay professional on the job,” she tells you. Then she grins. “But I _really_ hate rich bimbos. At least, it’s hilarious seeing your shocked expression,” your muscles apparently decide to stop working at this exact moment and you slump to the ground. “Yeah. Just like that.”  
  
Your body doesn’t answer to any of your commands. All that you can do is breath and move your eyes. You turn them and see that the little girl is gone. The spot where she was has its piles of dust completely untouched, like she was never there to begin with.  
  
_Fucking illusion Semblances!_ you realize.  
  
Among Semblances, illusion is a bit of a rarity. Most people that do possess one tend to rely on it a lot against Grimm and people, to the point of it becoming a crutch to them. So, when they encounter an Aura expert that can sense theirs with great accuracy instead of having to rely on his vision or hearing, they’re pretty much screwed. Also, some high level Grimm don’t even seem to be affected by this kind of Semblance.  
  
Personally, you don’t like illusion Semblances. Too many runs into some thieves and conman that used these…  
  
You look back at the emerald-haired woman, who is still grinning at you. She kicks you in the face and your belly, but you can’t feel anything. You see she turn to address somebody else:  
  
“Sack her,” she then leaves your field of vision and is replaced by a tall figure dressed in several layers of tattered cloak and carrying a big sack. His hands are clawed and almost skeletal with his right one being completely black with a bone spike protruding from the back of his hand.  
  
Suddenly, all you can see is the interior of a sack.  
  
It smells of sweat and blood…


	9. Interlude - Ruby 2

Ruby Rose is _not_ a happy person right now.  
  
She had spent the entire night trying to find Yang and fighting off Grimm that insisted on getting in her way. In the end, she had to limp back to her temporary home in Oedon Chapel covered in bruises, cuts and even a gash on her shoulder. Her cape was also needs to be stitched. Again.  
  
Her aura isn’t the strongest around to withstand prolonged fighting, even when she is on top form and focused enough to avoid being swarmed by four to seven enemies at once. She already knows what uncle Qrow is going say:  
  
“You look like shit.”  
  
Yeah, something like that.  
  
“Hi to you too…” she mumbles out in exhaustion as she enters the chapel.  
  
Qrow shrugs and goes back to drinking his bottle. It’s not Blood, just simple alcohol. However, nothing comes out, even when the man shakes its. the Hunter of Hunters glares at his flask, as if it had personally offended him, before sighing:  
  
“It’s days like these I wish I could still get drunk…” he lets out a mild cough at the end. It’s not as bad as his hacking when Ruby left to sweep the Cathedral Ward. “By the way, what happened? You said you were just going to sweep the area to clear the entry points.”  
  
“I met Yang and…” the Crimson Sweeper starts, but he interrupts, crossing his arms behind his head in a nonchalant gesture.  
  
“You two broke up?”  
  
“UNCLE QROW!!!” Ruby exclaims, blushing.  
  
“What? It’s pretty normal for Huntsmen and Huntresses to get physical when things go sour. It’s actually almost a tradition for one of the parties to leave with both legs broken if they cheated on one another,” Ruby shoots him a glare. “Honestly, you could do better. Like... what was the name of that girl you had a crush on? I liked her.”  
  
The Gravemaker groans. Honestly, Qrow only likes Blake because she's smart enough to bring him some fine wine when she visit (she never told him it was stolen from the upper quarters. Then again, that would probably only raise her points with him even more). While Ruby does miss the Faunus, she's trying to move on. Which is not easy considering Blake still has feelings for Ruby...  
  
As the two enter the chapel, they are greeted by Velvet, who drops everything she was holding upon seeing Ruby’s state:  
  
“Ruby! What happened?!”  
  
“I might have run into a mob. Or two… or four…”  
  
“Really? I thought you said seven,” Qrow quips in. Ruby throws him a death glare (of cuteness) to which he responds with a teasing and unrepentant look.  
  
Velvet ushers Ruby into a chair besides Daniel, who looks up upon sensing her approaching:  
  
“Oh. Hello Ruby. How was your patrol?”  
  
“Hey. … um, Daniel… could you maybe-”  
  
“Of course I can stich your cape back into shape.”  
  
Ruby smiles at him. Daniel might be technically blind, but he somehow is able to sewn clothes back into shape and hand it back as though it was new.  
  
As Qrow looks around as Velvet gets some first aid supplies in a nearby closet and Ruby sits down, handing her cape to the good Samaritan of Oeadon Chapel.  
  
That is when a little girl comes up to her:  
  
“Auntie Ruby is back! Auntie Ru… what happened?!”  
  
“Ah, had a run in with some bad Grimm,” Ruby tells her. Upon seeing the little girl looking worried, Ruby amended. “But don’t worry Madeline. Velvet is going to heal me.”  
  
“I really hope so,” an older girl says as she appears besides Madeline. “Those look nasty.”  
  
“Nah. I’ve been through worse.”  
  
Madeline and her sister Belle are Gascoigne’s daughters. After Ruby got them to leave their house, she brought them to Oedon Chapel, the safest place that she could think of. The building is pretty solid and defensible. Grimm would only have two entry points, which would render their numbers useless due to how narrow the entries were.  
  
Plus, due to the need of constant treatment, Qrow now stays here and, while her uncle is not exactly on his prime, specially after having purposely crippled his good arm, he's still pretty fast and capable with the right weapon, even if its only a gun and his bare fists.  
  
“Anything we can help with, Auntie Ruby?” Madeline asks.  
  
“Not really. But have you been studying and helping Velvet and Daniel like I told you to?” Ruby replies, putting up her smile soon after.  
  
The little girl tells her about her day and how Daniel was teaching her how to sewn, while the older sister watches them with a smile of her own. That is when Velvet comes back with some supplies.  
  
“Ok, you three. Velvet now needs to patch up Auntie Ruby,” the rabbit Faunus says.  
  
“Can’t we help?” the older sister asks.  
  
“Well, you could hold her down. We both know how much of a baby she is.”  
  
“I’m not a-!” Ruby was about to protest angrily, but stops as soon as she sees what Velvet has in her hands. “Er… Velvet. Can’t you simply heal me with your Semblance?”  
  
“Nope,” Velvet says, impersonating Ruby by popping the “p”, but with a smile that only _looks_ gentle. “Besides, maybe this way you’ll learn how to be more careful.”  
  
Qrow chuckles. Ruby wants to glare at him, but she knows if she let her eyes off Velvet for a second the Faunus nun will attack and apply that horrible concoction dripping from that ball of cotton whose only purpose is to cause her pain.  
  
 _“Cleaning wounds” my ass! I know you have a sadistic streak, you knock off nun!_ Ruby thinks as she eyes Velvet.  
  
“Now, now, Ruby,” Velvet says with a very soft and gentle tone, which is completely fake and both knew it. “You wouldn’t want to make a scene in front of the little ones would you?”  
  
“I’m not little, I’m already 10!” Madeline says, pouting cutely. Madeline merely giggles at the exchange, before joining in.  
  
“My, my. It seems my little sister is braver than you... Auntie Ruby,” Belle comments with mirth.  
  
Ruby turns her glare at them, ready to defend herself.  
  
That’s when the rabbit Faunus attacks.  
  
Ruby really wants to let out a squeak of pain, but she holds it in, puffing her cheeks out and holding the squeaks of pain she would otherwise let out as her eyes moisten over the pain of the antiseptic. At least it ends quickly and Velvet is merciful enough to use her Semblance and heal the rest of the wounds.  
  
“Why don’t you girls go and prepare a list of supplies we need?” Velvet asks them. The two nod and leave to check the medical closet on the other part of the chapel.  
  
“Sometimes, I wonder why Gascoigne never trained Belle. She shows promise,” Qrow speaks as he sits on a broken column.  
  
“He said he didn’t want them to take any part in the Life of the Hunt,” Velvet speaks as she observes the sisters working together. “I can understand that. After what happened with their parents…”  
  
Ruby can only look down in mourning. Gascoigne had been who first suggested she became a Huntress and trained her in the basics, while her uncle and mother training her on how to wield the family scythe. He was ready to recommend her to Byrgenwerth, when Master Willem suddenly died and the school went under restructuring as one of his pupils, Micolash, assumed the role of Headmaster.  
  
After that, everything went to shit.  
  
The disappearances... Grimm appearing inside the city… discovering exactly _where_ those Grimm came from… her own mother disappearing as well...  
  
Qrow is the only surviving member of her family, but Ruby held no illusions that it was only temporary. He did, after all, told her so and began her short training on the doctrine of the Hunters of Hunters, so she could eventually put him down if he was unable to do so.  
  
In the end, she would be the last one left before she too was consumed by the Blood...  
  
Once she recovered (after much insistence from her Uncle and Velvet that she took one day to rest), the Crimson Sweeper continue to look for Yang.  
  
“If she's really good and not all talk, then you don’t have anything to worry,” Qrow said in his typical uncaring tone, but there was a small warm to it that Ruby identified as him trying to reassure her.  
  
It was nice seeing her uncle could put his bias aside when it really came down to it.  
  
As Ruby jumps from rooftop to rooftop, she occasionally climbs atop one of the several tower spires that dot Yharnam’s sky view, sweeping her eyes over the decrepit city.  
  
Her mind seems insistent on showing images Yang's bloody form on some back-alley, or a carcass being eaten by a ravenous Grimm with only the bracelets being left on the corpse. Trying to ignore her imagination, Ruby notices something familiar:  
  
 _Is that a suit wearing a bucket?_ Ruby quickly shakes her head. _No, it’s only Valtr. Hey! Maybe he can help!_  
  
Reinforcing her feet with Aura, the Crimson Sweeper jumps on the abandoned carriages and vaults over the streets, landing at the edge of the building Valtr is perched upon. The Lieutenant turns, his posture alert and combat ready, but relaxes as he sees who has approached him:  
  
“Ah, Ruby! I see you're in good health.”  
  
“Hi Valtr. Sorry for appearing like this, but I need you to help me. It’s rather urgent.”  
  
Upon hearing those words, the man immediately assumes a more professional posture and tone; looking around and down on the streets before turning to the red-clad woman:  
  
“Are you being followed? Did something happen?” Valtr asks.  
  
“Nothing of that nature. I need your help to locate a friend of mine that went missing last night. She’s the foreign Huntress that-”  
  
“Ah, you mean Yang? Why, she’s right here, helping me with an assignment.”  
  
“REALLY?!?!?!” Ruby tried to control her voice, she really did, but her excitement wins in the end and she exclaims that for possibly everybody in the street bellow to hear. Valtr makes a shushing motion for her, but she couldn’t care less about his very justified paranoia. “Where is she?!”  
  
“If you can keep your voice lower, I can take you to her. She’s down the residential quarters, looking for those kidnap- wait!” Ruby is already running down the street before Valtr can finish.  
  
While looking around, Ruby uses her speed to quickly check any corner and open door. She soon finds an abandoned house that shows signs of somebody having recently entered it. Going inside, Ruby can see the dust on the floor had been disturbed by two- no, three pairs of footsteps, one of which looked barefoot. The crimson clad woman follows the footsteps to what looks like a closet. Opening it, she sees something that makes her heart stop: strands of golden hair on the floor. Grabbing it, Ruby looks at them and her hearing catches the sound of a door groaning on its hinges as its moved.  
  
 _They’re still here!_ she bolts and shoots to the door, drawing her rifle and loading a round.  
  
She gets out of the house and into the main street, scanning it with her eyes and sweeping her weapon around, looking for a target. She almost hits Valtr’s Bucket Head with her weapon when turning.  
  
“Ruby! What happened?!”  
  
Lowering her gun, Ruby tries to control her breath. She turns back to Valtr and speaks:  
  
“They… they took her. They took, Yang,” she clutches the golden strands together with her rifle…


End file.
